CHURCH COMMISSIONERS

Church Maintenance

John Cryer: To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners, what recent representations he has received regarding the cost of church repairs.

Stuart Bell: I have not received any particular representations on church repair costs following the launch of the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme in December 2001.

Church Lands (Deconsecration)

Gordon Prentice: To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners, how many (a) graveyards and (b) other church lands have been deconsecrated since 1972 and sold for development.

Stuart Bell: Since 1972 the Commissioners have completed 634 pastoral schemes to enable surplus churchyard or burial ground to be used for some other purpose, in most cases removing the legal effects of consecration. Very few of these cases have involved sale for development.

Clergy

Ben Chapman: To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners, if he will make a statement on clergy conditions of service.

Stuart Bell: Conditions vary slightly from dioceses to diocese. But, in addition to their stipend, based on a National Stipend Benchmark of £17,420 from April 2002, clergy receive free accommodation or a housing allowance, and membership of a non-contributory pension scheme. Their working expenses should be fully reimbursed.

ELECTORAL COMMISSION COMMITTEE

Referendum (Euro)

Norman Baker: To ask the right hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission if he will set out the Commission's responsibilities in respect of a referendum relating to membership of the euro.

Alan Beith: The role of the Commission in the conduct of any national or regional referendum are set out in the Political Parties, Referendums and Elections Act 2000. In summary, the Act provides that broadcasters must have regard to views of the Commission before making any rules with respect to referendum campaign broadcasts; the Commission shall consider the wording of the referendum question; the Commission shall receive declarations from and maintain a register of permitted participants; the Commission may designate one representative campaign organisation for each outcome of a referendum, and provide assistance in the form of grants and the provision of free facilities; the Commission shall ensure compliance with financial controls governing referendum expenditure and donations; the Chairman of the Commission (or his delegate) shall be the Chief Counting Officer for the referendum (except for a referendum held only in Northern Ireland, in which case the Chief Electoral Officer for Northern Ireland is the Chief Counting Officer) and shall appoint counting officers in each relevant local government area who will be responsible for certifying the result in that area; and the Commission shall be consulted by the Secretary of State before the making of Orders regulating the conduct of referendums, the Commission shall prepare and publish a report on the administration of referendums.

Referendums (Questions)

Julian Lewis: To ask the right hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission what reviews they intend to carry out relating to the wording of referendum questions.

Alan Beith: The wording of a national or regional referendum question will normally be specified in the Bill providing for the holding of the referendum. As soon as reasonably practicable after the Bill is introduced, the Commission, as required by the Political Parties, Referendums and Elections Act 2000, will consider the wording of the question and publish a statement of its views, if any, as to the intelligibility of the question. A recent Electoral Commission paper on the conduct of mayoral referendums reported some concerns about the wording of the question, and I understand that the Commission is in discussion with the Government as to whether it might be improved.

HOUSE OF COMMONS

Communications

James Gray: To ask the Chairman of the Administration Committee 
	(1)  what plans she has for the provision of (a) Braille translation facilities, (b) Braille typing facilities, (c) lip reading training and (d) lip speaking training for hon. Members and their staff;
	(2)  what steps she is taking to promote awareness of the services available to the blind and visually impaired for contacting hon. Members;
	(3)  if there is provision for a constituent writing to an hon. Member in Braille to have their letter translated into print and the subsequent reply translated from print into Braille;
	(4)  what steps she is taking to promote awareness of the services available to the deaf and hard of hearing for contacting hon. Members;
	(5)  pursuant to the answer of 31 January 2002, Official Report, columns 507–08W, and following the resolutions of the House of 5 July 2001, what proportion of the new general services budget is earmarked for (a) the provision of special telephone equipment and Braille equipment and (b) training in their use, for the purpose of constituents contacting their Member of Parliament and vice versa.

Marion Roe: I refer the hon. Member to the replies given to him on 31 January 2002, Official Report, columns 507–08W. These areas are not strictly the responsibility of the Administration Committee; however, I understand that the Director of Finance and Administration will be happy to assist the hon. Member with any queries or concerns.

Ministerial Boxes

Ashok Kumar: To ask the President of the Council by what means ministerial boxes are conveyed from private offices in his Department to (a) himself and (b) his fellow Ministers; how frequently and at what expense private courier firms are employed for such a task; and which courier firms have been used for such duties.

Robin Cook: Ministerial boxes originating from my Department are transported to the House or to my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary's home by Government car. My staff and I sometimes take papers to my home on foot. No private courier firms are used.

Legislation

Pete Wishart: To ask the President of the Council how much Government legislation in this Parliamentary session concerns (a) the UK, (b) Great Britain only, (c) England and Wales only, (d) England only, (e) Northern Ireland only and (f) Scotland only.

Robin Cook: The following table sets out the number of Bills introduced so far this session, as they apply to the United Kingdom and its constituent parts. The totals given include those Bills that contain provisions relating to all the relevant constituent parts, whether or not all the provisions within such Bills have the same territorial extent.
	
		
			 Extent Number of bills 
		
		
			 United Kingdom 18 
			 Great Britain 2 
			 England and Wales only 7 
			 England only 0 
			 Northern Ireland only 3 
			 Scotland only 0

DEFENCE

British Army (Germany)

Mike Wood: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the establishment against actual strength of British army units in Germany; and how many requests for transfer there are for each of these units.

Adam Ingram: pursuant to his reply, 28 January 2002, c. 24–26W
	I regret the information provided was incomplete. The table omitted figures relating to 102 Logistics Brigade which is provided. All other figures remain correct.
	
		102 Logistics Brigade and 1 Regiment Army Air Corps
		
			 Unit Establishment Actual strength 
		
		
			 HQ 102 Log Bde 43 43 
			 6 Sup Regt RLC 773 343 
			 7 Tpt Regt RLC 577 352 
			 1 Regt AAC 299 (1)366 
		
	
	(1) Drawdown to new establishment to be completed by October 2002

Theft and Fraud

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what additional security measures are planned by his Department to deter and detect theft and fraud.

Lewis Moonie: The Ministry of Defence has in place a range of measures to deter and detect fraud and theft. Through our internal fraud policy, and response plan, it is made clear to line managers, at all levels, that dishonest behaviour will not be tolerated and that all suspicions will be investigated, many of them by the MOD Police or Service Police Authorities. Where suspected perpetrators can be identified, appropriate criminal or internal disciplinary action will be taken. Staff are encouraged to report suspicions and are also aware that the MOD has in place long established controls such as separation of duties, spot checks and physical security.
	Additional measures introduced over recent years include the creation of the Defence Fraud Analysis Unit, which is responsible for overseeing fraud policy, maintaining data, promoting fraud awareness and encouraging a proactive response to fraud, including the use of private sector consultants and specialists in the fields of quantity surveying and data mining.

Invoice Payments

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the instances in which his Department, agencies and non-departmental public bodies failed to pay valid invoices within 30 days or after the agreed credit period in the financial year 2000–01.

Lewis Moonie: The majority of the Ministry of Defence bills (some 95 per cent.) are paid by the Defence Bills Agency (DBA) which paid 100 per cent. of correctly presented bills within 30 days in the financial year 2000–01. The balance of the MOD's payments was made by the MOD's Trading Fund Agencies. Their performance against the 30 day target was as follows: Defence Evaluation and Research Agency 94.4 per cent.; Meteorological Office 99.9 per cent.; and the Hydrographic Office 98.5 per cent.

Royal Ordnance

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans there are for Royal Ordnance to source ammunition from overseas for MOD needs.

Lewis Moonie: The Ministry of Defence places contracts with RO Defence as the prime contractor for ammunition. The sourcing of ammunition and its component parts is a commercial decision that rests with the prime contractor. RO Defence is contracted to supply ammunition which is safe and suitable for use, provides both value for money and security of supply, and meets all the stringent requirements for UK service.

Data Protection Act

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the Department's procedure is for responding to requests for information under the Data Protection Act 1998; if he will place a copy in the Library; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: Subject Access Requests (SARs) can be received at any level within the Ministry of Defence. Guidance on answering SARs has been cascaded throughout the MOD and its Agencies to a comprehensive network of data protection focal points for data protection issues. Different areas will have their own procedures to ensure compliance with MOD Guidance and the Data Protection Act. Departmental Guidance is regularly reviewed and updated as we continue to evaluate and develop our procedures. A copy of the current Guidance Notes will be placed in the Library of the House.

Data Protection Act

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what administration fees are charged by the Department for information requests made under the Data Protection Act 1998;
	(2)  how many responses to requests for information under the Data Protection Act 1998 the Department has completed (a) within 40 days of receipt of, (b) between 40 and 60 days of receiving and (c) over 60 days after receiving the £10 administration fee;
	(3)  how many responses the Department has completed to requests for information made under the Data Protection Act 1998 for (a) electronically held information and (b) paper documentation;
	(4)  what percentage of responses to requests for information under the Data Protection Act 1998 the Department has completed (a) within 40 days of receipt of the £10 fee, (b) between 40 and 60 days of and (c) over 60 days after receiving the administration fee;
	(5)  what the policy of the Department is for ensuring responses to requests for information under the Data Protection Act 1998 are completed within 40 days; and what their procedure is to achieve this;
	(6)  what the period of time elapsed is for the oldest outstanding request for information under the Data Protection Act 1998, since receipt of the (a) original request and (b) administration fee;
	(7)  what his estimate is of the average cost of processing each information request under the Data Protection Act 1998;
	(8)  how many responses to requests for information under the Data Protection Act 1998 have been completed (a) within 40 days, (b) between 40 and 60 days and (c) over 60 days after receiving the original letter; and how many are still outstanding;
	(9)  what the longest period of time elapsed is between receiving (a) the administration fee and providing the information requested and (b) a request for information and providing the information requested, under the Data Protection Act 1998;
	(10)  how many requests the Department has received under the Data Protection Act 1988 for (a) electronically held information and (b) paper documentation.

Lewis Moonie: The Ministry of Defence does not hold information centrally relating to the number or format of Subject Access Requests (SAR) received. Nor do we hold information centrally about the type of documentation requested. There is no requirement in the Act, or by the Information Commissioner to collate such information centrally therefore we have not set up such an arrangement.
	However, Guidance on answering Subject Access Requests in compliance with the Data Protection Act 1998 has been cascaded throughout the MOD and its Agencies to a comprehensive network of nominated data protection focal points for data protection issues who monitor performance in their own area. As SARs can be received anywhere within the MOD, to collate this information would require us to contact all the different areas and assemble the information in a compatible format. Such an exercise would involve disproportionate effort. The Act provides that a data controller is not obliged to answer a SAR unless he has received a request in writing, the fee payable and sufficient information to confirm the identity of the applicant and to locate the information sought. The MOD currently does not make a charge for SAR.

Golden Jubilee

Tim Yeo: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what events (a) he is and (b) other Ministers in his Department are planning to attend as part of the Golden Jubilee celebrations; and what events his Department is planning to arrange to celebrate the Golden Jubilee.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 4 February 2002
	I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on 11 February, Official Report, columns 58–59W.

Golden Jubilee Medal

Jonathan Djanogly: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what reason members of the RAF Reserve are not eligible to receive the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal.

Lewis Moonie: The RAF Reserve is divided into two broad categories, volunteer member and those former members of the Regular RAF who have a liability for a period of reserve service. Those volunteer members who were in effective military service on 6 February 2002 and had completed five annual bounty earning training years prior to that date are eligible to receive the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal (QGJM).
	Ex-Regular members of the RAF Reserve will not have qualified for the QGJM unless on 6 February 2002 they had been called out for permanent service and their aggregated Regular service and/or Volunteer Reserve service totalled five years. Some Ministry of Defence civil servants who are required to wear service uniform as part of their terms of employment, are commissioned into the RAF Reserve (Civil Component). They are employed on civil service terms and conditions and so will not qualify for the medal, as is the case for civil servants generally.

Public Bodies (Chairmen)

Eric Forth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the appointments made by his Department since 1 May 1997 of chairmen of (a) non-departmental public bodies, (b) commissions, (c) inquiries, (d) agencies and (e) task forces; and if he will list their (i) term of office, (ii) salary and (iii) known political affiliation (A) past and (B) present.

Lewis Moonie: Details of the appointments of Chairmen of Ministry of Defence-sponsored non-departmental public bodies are set out in the table. Information is not collected on the political affiliation of appointees.
	The MOD has not appointed a Chairman to any commissions, public inquiries or agencies since 1 May 1997.
	Information on the number, remit and membership of task forces, ad hoc advisory groups and reviews is published by the Cabinet Office on a regular basis. The first report was published on 11 January 2000 and gives information for the period from 1 May 1997 to 31 October 1999. A second report was published on 27 July 2000 and covered the period 1 November 1999 to 30 April 2000. A third report was published on 13 December 2000 covering the period 1 May 2000 to 31 October 2000. The most recent report, "Task Forces, Ad Hoc Advisory Groups and Reviews", was issued in October 2001 and covers the period of the financial year 2000–01. Copies of these reports have been placed in the Library of the House.
	
		NDPB chairman appointments in MOD since 1 May 1997
		
			 Name of body Chairman Date of appointment Appointment ends Salary 
		
		
			 Advisory Committee on Conscientious Objectors His Honour Judge Rogers(2) 27 October 1997 23 October 1999 £178 per day 
			 Advisory Group on Medical Countermeasures Name withheld(3) 1 February 1998 No date(4) £265 per day 
			 Animal Welfare Advisory Committee Dr. Robert Hubrecht 13 July 2000 April 2002 £250 per day 
			 Armed Forces Pay Review Body Right hon. Baroness Dean of Thornton-le-Fylde 1 April 1999 31 March 2002 Nil 
			 Dartmoor Steering Group Mr. James Woollcombe 18 December 2000 17 December 2003 Nil 
			 Defence Nuclear Safety Committee Dr. Sam Harbison CB 1 January 2000 1 January 2005 £315 per day 
			 Defence Scientific Advisory Council Professor Anthony Ledwith 11 August 2000 31 March 2003 £315 per day 
			 Independent Board of Visitors to the Military Corrective Training Centre Mr. R Jacklin 1 January 1998 and 4 April 2001 1 June 2006 Nil 
			 National Army Museum General Sir John Waters GCB CBE JP 1 July 1997 and 30 March 2001 30 March 2002 Nil 
			 National Employers Liaison Committee Mr. John Bridgeman CBE TD DL 1 December 1997 1 December 2002 Nil 
			 Nuclear Research Advisory Council Dr. Derek Robinson 1 October 2001 1 October 2006 £315 per day 
			 Oil and Pipelines Agency Dr. John Hastie 8 July 1999 7 July 2002 £9,800 per year 
			 Review Board for Government Contracts Sir Peter Webster 17 March 1999 30 September 2001 £10,990 per year 
			 RAF Museum(5) AM Ian McFayden 4 May 1999 (elected Chair September 1999) February 2001 Nil 
			  ACM Sir Richard Johns 7 December 2000 (elected Chair February 2001) 6 December 2003 Nil 
			 Royal Marines Museum Lieutenant General Sir Henry Beverley 1 May 1997 1 May 2003 Nil 
			 Royal Military College of Science Advisory Council Mr. Peter Gershon 9 October 2000 8 October 2005 £110 per day 
			 Royal Naval Museum Vice Admiral Sir Barry Wilson KCB 15 March 1999 and 9 January 2002 15 March 2003 Nil 
			 Royal Navy Submarine Museum Vice Admiral Sir Roy Newman 1 August 1999 1 August 2004 Nil 
			 War Pensions Committees—Northern Ireland Major Gordon Dodds MBE 1 January 2001 31 December 2003 Nil 
			 War Pensions Committees—West of Scotland Mr. Derek Evans 1 January 2001 31 December 2003 Nil 
			 War Pensions Committees—East of Scotland Mr. Arthur Oliver 1 January 2001 31 December 2003 Nil 
			 War Pensions Committees—Yorkshire and Humberside Mrs. Jane Gummer MBE JP DL LLB 1 January 2001 31 December 2003 Nil 
			 War Pensions Committees—North West England Lieutenant Colonel Stephen Overton 1 January 2001 31 December 2003 Nil 
			 War Pensions Committees—East Midlands Mrs. Irene Shiels 1 January 2001 31 December 2003 Nil 
			 War Pensions Committees—West Midlands Mr. Anthony Hartley-Woolley 1 January 2001 31 December 2003 Nil 
			 War Pensions Committees—Eastern England Lieutenant Colonel Ray Holland OBE 1 January 2001 31 December 2003 Nil 
			 War Pensions Committees—South East England Ms Penny Melville-Brown 1 January 2001 31 December 2003 Nil 
			 War Pensions Committees—London Air Commodore Jack Hargreaves 1 January 2001 31 December 2003 Nil 
			 War Pensions Committees—South West England Major Tim Tyler 1 January 2001 31 December 2003 Nil 
		
	
	(2) Appointed by the Lord Chancellor
	(3) Name withheld under Exemption 12 (privacy of an individual) of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.
	(4) The AGMC was not an NDPB at the date of this appointment, and there was no specific term of office stated. Now that AGMC was classified as an NDPB, all members' terms of office will be reviewed formally to specify appropriate length of service.
	(5) Ministers appoint Trustees to the Board of the RAF Museum, which then elects a Chair from among its members.

Departmental Events

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the (a) conferences, (b) seminars, (c) workshops, (d) exhibitions and (e) press conferences which have been sponsored by his Department and which took place on non-departmental premises in each of the last four years, giving the title, purpose, date and cost of each.

Lewis Moonie: This information is not held centrally in the form requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. I regret I am therefore unable to provide a substantive answer under the terms of Exemption 9 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.

Civilian Locums

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cost was of civilian locums in each of the last five years.

Lewis Moonie: The cost of civilian locums incurred by British Forces Germany and the Defence Secondary Care Agency (DSCA) in respect of its directly managed units in the last five financial years is shown in the table. The cost of providing civilian locums in place of military personnel at the Ministry of Defence Hospital Units is met by the host trusts. It is not possible to provide information for the cost of civilian locums employed in primary care as the information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	
		
			 Financial year £ million 
		
		
			 1997–98 2.34 
			 1998–99 2.72 
			 1999–2000 4.03 
			 2000–01 5.85 
			 2001–02 3.67 
		
	
	Note:
	The figure for 2001–02 is to end of December 2001.

Defence Medical Services

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many conversions from short to (a) intermediate and (b) full career commissions there were within the Defence Medical Services in each of the last five years.

Lewis Moonie: The number of conversions from short to intermediate commissions and from short to full career commissions within the Defence Medical Services in each of the last five years are shown in the table.
	
		
			  Short to intermediate commission Short to full career commission 
		
		
			 1996–97 17 45 
			 1997–98 16 37 
			 1998–99 82 36 
			 1999–2000 55 25 
			 2000–01 48 33

Hawk Aircraft (India)

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what provision has been made for British aircrew to train Indian pilots in the use of Hawk aircraft if British Hawk aircraft are sold to India.

Lewis Moonie: holding answer 11 February 2002
	Details of BAE Systems bid to sell Hawk advanced jet trainer aircraft to India, including any provisions for training support, are a matter for the company and the Government of India. In line with its role of supporting legitimate defence exports, and a policy of offering spare training capacity to overseas customers, the Ministry of Defence may make UK aircrew and facilities available if requested.

Exports (Subcontinent)

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what contracts for UK defence exports are expected to be signed with (a) Pakistan and (b) India in 2002.

Lewis Moonie: holding answer 11 February 2002
	The signing of contracts for UK defence exports is a matter for the commercial companies involved and their proposed customers.

Exports (Subcontinent)

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what defence exports the Government are engaged in promoting to Pakistan.

Lewis Moonie: holding answer 11 February 2002
	Details of commercial companies' marketing strategies and promotions are a matter for the companies involved. It does, however, remain Government policy to support the promotion of legitimate defence exports to Pakistan that are compatible with our export control criteria.

Working Conditions and Practices

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many people are employed in his Department on a job share contract; and what percentage of vacant positions was advertised on this basis in the last 12 months.

Lewis Moonie: I assume that the hon. Member is referring to civilian employees of the Ministry of Defence. the MOD is committed to the work/life balance of its civilian staff. A range of flexible working patterns including part time working, flexible working hours, home working and job sharing is available to staff by agreement with their management. United Kingdom Defence Statistics 2001, Chapter 2, Section 2.20 shows 4,533 staff (excluding those in Trading Funds) employed on a part time basis at 1 April 2001. Of these, 596 are recorded centrally as being employed formally under job share arrangements. Figures are not available on the number of vacant positions advertised on this basis although our general policy is that, unless specific job requirements prevent it, positions should be open to flexible working arrangements including job sharing.

RAF Eurofighters

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Eurofighters are planned to be delivered to the RAF in each of the next five years.

Lewis Moonie: The Tranche 1 Eurofighter production contract with industry calls for six aircraft to be delivered to the RAF in financial year 2002–03, 14 in 2003–04, 19 in 2004–05 and 13 in 2005–06. Three additional aircraft will be procured for development purposes but will not enter service with the RAF. The Tranche 2 production contract is expected to be placed next year with deliveries commencing in 2006.

QinetiQ

Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if development on QinetiQ land is covered by Crown immunity; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: Property transferred to QinetiQ, and developed by them, is not subject to Crown immunity.
	I assume that this question arises from the recent announcement by the Home Office that land owned by QinetiQ near Pershore is being considered as a potential site for an asylum-seeker accommodation centre. Assuming Pershore is one of the sites chosen, as soon as the Home Office purchase the land it becomes Crown land, and therefore any subsequent development would be covered by Crown immunity.

QinetiQ

Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he is the owner of QinetiQ; what powers he has to influence the disposal of property owned by QinetiQ; if these powers extend to the power to instruct disposal; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: At present the Ministry of Defence wholly owns QinetiQ plc and its subsidiaries. Under the terms of the Business Transfer Agreement (BTA), signed on 1 July 2001, MOD, as a special shareholder, enjoys a number of rights that could be used to prevent the company from disposing of strategic assets and facilities. However, these assets, deemed important to the national defence interest, are small in number. No special shareholder rights exist which could be used to instruct disposal of property owned by QinetiQ.
	In the short-term, MOD, as the majority shareholder, does have additional rights which could be used to instruct the company to undertake a certain course of action. However, it has always been our intention that the company should fully develop commercial opportunities and income, and maximise the use of its assets. Commercial development of the company's real estate is in keeping with this, is good for the company and its shareholders, and will be welcomed by future potential investors. Therefore, unless an over-riding defence interest arose, MOD would not contemplate using its majority shareholder rights to influence the company's normal day-to-day operation.

QinetiQ

Michael Spicer: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects to make an announcement on the details of the privatisation of QinetiQ.

Geoff Hoon: The decision on the precise timing and nature of a sale transaction for QinetiQ will be based on achieving best value for money for the taxpayer. In conjunction with specialist advisers and QinetiQ's management we are reviewing the way forward and I expect to make an announcement shortly.

City of London Corporation (Events)

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list those functions, engagements and events which Ministers, his officials and advisers have attended which have been sponsored, funded, promoted and hosted by the City of London Corporation since 1997.

Lewis Moonie: This information is not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Underwater Capability

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the maritime underwater capability; what this will involve; and when the project will begin.

Lewis Moonie: The Maritime Underwater Future Capability, previously known as the Future Attack Submarine, is the project looking into the range of future capabilities required by the United Kingdom for the control and denial of the underwater battlespace into the third and fourth decades of the century. We will be considering a range of concepts, including innovation solutions combining unmanned underwater vehicles, ships, airborne and land assets, as well as submarines. The project has already begun.

Future Surface Combatant

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what consideration is being given to the replacement of the Type 23 frigate with the Future Surface Combatant; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: We currently plan for the Future Surface Combatant (FSC) to succeed the current Type 22 and Type 23 classes of frigate. The assumption is that FSC will be an operationally versatile, affordable warship that can be deployed through life across the full spectrum of defence missions. The project has already begun.

Offshore Protection Vessels

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the three offshore protection vessels that are to be procured and their (a) capabilities and (b) cost.

Lewis Moonie: The first vessel is due to enter service with the Royal Navy around the end of this year, with the others following at roughly six-monthly intervals. They will replace the five vessels of the Island class, the capability and availability of which they will match. The new vessels are being built, following competition, by Vosper Thorneycroft at Southampton. They will be leased to the RN and will be maintained by the shipbuilder for five years, subject to extension. The vessels will be based at Portsmouth as part of the Fishery Protection Squadron. The total cost of this innovative lease package is approximately £60 million.

Equipment Sales

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the benefit to the UK was from the sale of naval equipment and platforms in each year since 1997.

Lewis Moonie: Information in the Ministry of Defence publication UK Defence Statistics 2001 at Table 1.13 shows that for each of the years since 1997, the value of export orders in the sea sector was as follows:
	
		
			 Year Total (£ million) 
		
		
			 1997 368 
			 1998 738 
			 1999 148 
			 2000 475 
		
	
	In addition to the economic benefits from the sale of naval equipment and platforms, the Government's policy of supporting legitimate defence exports contributes to our wider defence and international security interests, including by reducing the costs of Royal Navy procurement. Defence exports help support a strong defence industry and contribute to the security of our friends and allies overseas.

Equipment Sales

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many warships and submarines have been sold to foreign states since 1997; what type they were; and which states bought them.

Lewis Moonie: Information relating to defence exports in categories published in the UN Nations Conventional Arms Register (UNCAR) and exports of surplus Government defence equipment is set out in Part III of the Government's annual report on Strategic Export Controls. Details of individual exports of new equipment, other than those in UNCAR categories and small arms, are not published for reasons of commercial and customer confidentiality. A summary of information taken from the annual reports on Strategic Export Controls published since 1997 is set out in the table.
	
		Exports of naval vessels and submarines 1997–2000
		
			  Country 
		
		
			 1997  
			 One type 22 frigate Brazil 
			 Four (56 m) Barzan fast strike craft Qatar 
			   
			 1998  
			 Four River Class minesweepers Brazil 
			   
			 1999  
			 Two LEKIU frigates Malaysia 
			   
			 2000  
			 One Upholder submarine Canada 
		
	
	In addition to those transfers recorded in the Government's annual reports, three Royal Navy Peacock class patrol craft previously based in Hong Kong were transferred direct to the Philippines in 1997, and a refurbished ex Royal Navy Hunt class mine counter measure vessel was transferred to Greece in 2000 under a commercial arrangement with Vosper Thorneycroft UK Ltd.

Secondments

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the names of staff who have been seconded to his Department from the private sector since May 1997, indicating (a) the names of the organisation from which each has come, (b) their responsibilities and civil service grades within his Department, (c) the organisation responsible for paying their salary and (d) the start and end dates of their secondment.

Lewis Moonie: holding answer 12 February 2002
	Secondments and attachments form a valuable part of interchange, through which the civil service and other organisations exchange people and good practice to mutual benefit.
	The Ministry of Defence has a significant programme of interchange, involving all parts of the economy. Since May 1997, 57 staff have been seconded to the MOD from private sector companies; of these 15 were in place prior to May 1997 and continued beyond that date. Three of the secondees were at Senior Civil Service level, though the majority were brought in at middle management level (civil service grades HEO to Grade 6). The MOD reimbursed the parent company for 46 of the 57 secondments.
	It is our practice to respect the privacy of our personnel, including those on secondment, and to withhold the names of individuals except where the seniority of the individual or the nature of the post warrants a formal announcement. I am therefore withholding that information under Exemption 12 (Privacy of an Individual) of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.
	I will however write to the hon. Member with the other details of these secondments as requested, and a copy will be placed in the Library of the House.

Ministerial Boxes

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence by what means ministerial boxes are conveyed from private offices in his Department to (a) himself and (b) his fellow Ministers; how frequently and at what expense private courier firms are employed for such a task; and which courier firms have been used for such duties.

Lewis Moonie: Ministerial boxes originating from this Department are transported to the Ministers' homes either by Government car or by a service provided by the Royal Mail.

Statutory Instruments

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the statutory instruments issued by his Department in the last 12 months, indicating (a) the purpose of each and (b) the cost of each to (i) public funds, (ii) businesses and (iii) individuals.

Lewis Moonie: The HMSO Statutory Instrument Registrar can provide a list of statutory instruments issued by individual Departments. Statutory instruments which have been originated by Departments but eventually made by the Privy Council are listed only under the Privy Council Office. However, between 1 January 2001 and 7 February 2002, the Ministry of Defence issued the following 11 statutory instruments:
	SI 2001/1165
	The Defence Aviation and Repair Agency Trading Fund Order and
	SI 2001/1246
	The Defence Scientific and Technological Laboratory Trading Fund Order. These orders gave both organisations trading fund status.
	SI 2001/3234
	The Armed Forces Act 2001 (Commencement No.1) Order 2001 that commenced sections of the Armed Forces Act 2001.
	SIs 2001/542; 1520; 1521 and SI 2002/201
	Four statutory instruments entitled Terms of Service (Amendment) Regulations. These instruments amended service regulations in consequence of the previously mentioned commencement order.
	SI 2001/1015
	The Injuries in War (Shore Employments) (Compensation) Scheme 2001 updated the rate of pension payable to recipients.
	SIs 2002/229; 230 and 231
	The Courts-Martial (Amendment) Rules. These instruments made amendments to court-martial rules in consequence of the Armed Forces Act 2001.
	Any costs to public funds arising from the above instruments are minimal. As the Ministry of Defence is not a regulatory body there are few, if any, costs to businesses and individuals. Any costs relating to instruments made by MOD are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Claymore Mines

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if records are kept of locations in which Her Majesty's armed forces deploy Claymore mines; and if such records include details of in which mode of operation the Claymore is deployed.

Adam Ingram: The locations in which Claymore mines are deployed are recorded. Claymore mines are used only in the command detonated mode of operation, which requires a soldier to initiate the munition.

45 Commando Royal Marines

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what mission has been given to (a) HMS Ocean and (b) W and Z companies of 45 Commando Royal Marines.

Geoff Hoon: HMS Ocean, with W and Z companies of 45 Commando Royal Marines embarked, has been deployed in support of the continuing campaign against international terrorism. HMS Ocean will relieve HMS Illustrious and HMS Fearless and elements of 45 Commando will relieve elements of 40 Commando. The deployment of HMS Ocean ensures that the UK capability in the region is maintained.

Armed Forces Pension Group

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many representations he has received from the (a) Armed Forces Pension Group, (b) individuals and (c) others in support of the Group; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: No representations have been received directly from the Armed Forces Pension Group. However, since the start of 2001, around 230 individual representations have been received on the subject of pension rights for service prior to 1975. It is thought that the vast majority were from members of the Group or supporters of its objectives. We have also received a representation from a pensioners' federation.

Armed Forces Pension Group

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what action he has taken in response to representations by the Armed Forces Pension Group that service in the armed forces should count towards their civil service pensions; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: Service in the armed forces and service with the civil service are different employments with different terms, conditions and career patterns. It is reasonable that each should be covered by a separate occupational pension scheme.
	Whether service with the armed forces may count towards the civil service pension scheme is a matter for the Cabinet Office, who are the managers of the scheme. It should be noted that service covered by one occupational pension scheme cannot count directly towards the occupational pension scheme of another employer. However, a facility is available to enable the pension rights earned under one employer's occupational pension scheme to be transferred to the occupational pension scheme of another employer, but this is only possible where a transfer of the preserved pension benefits is made. Prior to 1 April 1975 there was no legal requirement for any pension scheme to preserve pension rights for those who left service before reaching the normal retirement age, therefore transfers did not take place before this date.

ABRO

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cost was of (a) setting up and (b) maintaining the ABRO Challenger 2 overhaul line at Bovington in each of the last five years.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 14 February 2002
	The costs of setting up a Challenger 2 Base Inspection Repair line at the Army Base Repair Organisation Bovington are as follows:
	Financial year 2000–01—a sum of £14,329 was spent on set-up tooling for pilot activity.
	Financial year 2001–02—ABRO working towards a contract with VDS have committed £251,276 to Base Inspection Repair of Challenger 2.
	There were no costs prior to these years.
	A Base Inspection Repair contract let by the Tank Support Systems Integrated Project Team is still under negotiation. With full production yet to commence, and pilot activity only undertaken to date, the maintenance costs have been negligible.

ABRO

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what arrangements exist for ABRO to act as a strategic partner with manufacturers for the repair of military vehicles.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 14 February 2002
	There are no formal arrangements in place for the Army Base Repair Organisation (ABRO) to act as a strategic partner with manufacturers for the repair of military vehicles. ABRO is having discussions with industry to develop future opportunities and currently has signed agreements to this effect with ALVIS and VDS which encourage the parties to discuss potential future projects.

ABRO

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what military equipment ABRO maintains surge production capacity for times of conflict.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 14 February 2002
	The Army Base Repair Organisation (ABRO) does not maintain dedicated surge capacity for any specific equipments. The requirement for military surge capability is protected by both the diversity of the Ministry of Defence work placed with ABRO and the working regime that ABRO has in place to meet this.

ABRO

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proportion of the work allocated to ABRO in each of the last four years was put out to tender for competitive bids; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 14 February 2002
	The following work was won by the Army Base Repair Organisation as a result of competitive bids:
	
		
			 Financial Year £ million 
		
		
			 1998–99 11.987 
			 1999–2000 0.216 
			 2000–01 4.749 
			 2001–02 NIL

ABRO

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement setting out the strategic purpose of ABRO.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 14 February 2002
	My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence after careful review has decided that the Army Base Repair Organisation (ABRO) should vest as a trading fund with effect from 1 April 2002. This will be the subject of debate in Standing Committee on 26 February 2002. ABRO provides a comprehensive engineering and logistics support service, principally repair and maintenance, for land-based equipment of Her Majesty's armed forces. The work ranges from the complete overhaul and modification of major military vehicles to upgrades to radios and weapons. ABRO provides independent equipment advice, support to obsolete equipment no longer provided by industry and a unique surge capacity. The need to meet military surge capacity is safeguarded by both the diversity of the Ministry of Defence work place with ABRO and the working regime that the agency employs. Trading fund status will enable the MOD to realise a broad range of benefits, including a clearer customer/supplier relationship through hard charging, while retaining the flexibility to support operations, which MOD ownership provides. Trading fund will also enable ABRO to sustain its operations in support of MOD by providing similar engineering services to industry under commercial arrangements.

Officer Job Evaluations

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many officer job evaluations were carried out in 2001; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: 80 officer jobs were evaluated in 2001. A significantly larger programme is planned for 2002 and additional resources have been allocated to achieve this.

Service Entitlements

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when his Department's studies examining disparities between entitlements of married personnel and those living in partnerships will be completed.

Adam Ingram: Disparities in the entitlements of married and unmarried personnel have reduced over the years. In its 2002 report the Armed Forces Pay Review Body commented that this was not a clear-cut issue for the services and that there was concern among married personnel that offering parity of treatment to partnerships will result in scarce resources being spread more thinly. Work on a number of related aspects of conditions of service, including pensions and allowances, is likely to continue for at least some months.

Single Living Accommodation

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to review the removals package for single living accommodation to take account of trends in respect of personal possessions.

Adam Ingram: With effect from 1 April 2002 the current rank-based unaccompanied baggage entitlements for single and married unaccompanied personnel posted within the UK or to and from north-west Europe (defined for these purposes as Belgium, Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands) will be superseded by an improved standard entitlement of 6 cu m for all ranks. This will more than double the entitlement for junior personnel (Privates and Lance Corporals and their equivalents). There are no current plans for a further review.

Strong Resolve 2002

Martyn Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement about British military involvement in NATO's forthcoming exercise Strong Resolve 2002.

Geoff Hoon: Exercise Strong Resolve is NATO's largest exercise and is carried out every four years. This year, it is taking place between 1 and 15 March and involves some 26,000 troops from 26 nations. The United Kingdom is making a significant and balanced contribution to Strong Resolve 2002, including maritime, land, air and many specialist assets, such as signals units and other combat service support elements. Around 2,500 UK military personnel are taking part.

Health and Safety (Computers)

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many employees in his Department who regularly use computers have taken up the provision of a free eye test; and how this service is advertised to (a) current and (b) new staff.

Lewis Moonie: The Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992, effective January 1993, require employers to provide and pay for, upon request from an employee, an eye and eyesight test. There is a requirement for further tests at regular intervals; the optometrist doing the first test can recommend when the next one should be. In addition, employers must pay the cost of special spectacles required where normal ones cannot be used. The Ministry of Defence meets all these obligations.
	We do not record centrally how many employees who regularly use computers have been provided with a free eye test and this information could be provided only at disproportionate cost. As with all aspects of health and safety legislation MOD has auditable procedures in place to ensure that the system is properly managed. The requirement is defined in the MOD's health and safety handbook, and is publicised extensively in local and MOD wide newsletters and publications. It is also included in induction training courses for all new staff.

Sierra Leone

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many UK personnel are deployed in Sierra Leone; what has been the cost of deployments; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: We currently have some 360 shore-based personnel deployed in Sierra Leone, and we will maintain our presence at that level over the period of presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled for May 2002. We are also contributing 15 military observers and seven headquarters staff to UNAMSIL, the UN operation in Sierra Leone. The cost of the deployments, excluding the provision of equipment to the Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces (RSLAF), was £16.9 million in the last financial year, and is estimated to be around £30 million in the current financial year.
	On the current situation in Sierra Leone, I refer the hon. Member to the answers I gave in the House on 11 February, Official Report, columns 15–16 to the hon. Member for Faversham and Mid-Kent (Hugh Robertson) and the right hon. Member for North-East Hampshire (Mr. Arbuthnot).

Battle of Trafalgar

Martyn Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to mark the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 15 January 2002, Official Report, columns 125–26W to the hon. Member for Aylesbury (Mr. Lidington).

Service Applications

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the increase in other ranks applications to the three services in 2000–01 which has not led to entries; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: Records of the numbers of Other Ranks applications and intakes for the years 1999–2000, 2000–01 and part of 2001–02 show the following:
	
		
			 Services 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02(6) 
		
		
			 Naval
			 Applicants 13,251 13,034 8,579 
			 Intake 4,545 4,175 3,227 
			 Conversation Rate (per cent.) 34.3 32.0 37.6  
			 Army
			 Applicants 37,992 33,812 25,590 
			 Intake 15,436 13,843 9,384 
			 Conversion Rate (per cent.) 40.6 40.9 36.7  
			 RAF
			 Applicants 16,218 15,997 10,984 
			 Intake 3,613 3,193 2,506 
			 Conversion Rate (per cent.) 22.3 20.0 22.8  
		
	
	(6) Figures for 2000–02 only cover the period up to 31 December 2001
	It should be remembered that not all successful applicants may necessarily join the armed forces in the same year that they applied, due to the time needed to process the applications fully.
	The figures demonstrate the conversion rates of applicants to intake has remained reasonably constant for the Naval Service and for the RAF. The change in conversion rate for the Army is associated with the introduction of an enhanced selection scheme aimed at reducing wastage during initial training. Only those assessed at Recruit Selection Centres as having more than a 90 per cent. chance of passing Phase 1 training are now selected. The higher quality of recruits ensures that final output to the field army (ie. the gains to the trained strength) remains largely the same despite the smaller intake.

House Purchase Assistance

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to review his policy with respect to making long-service advance of pay for house purchase available to the Royal Navy at the age of 23 and to the Army and RAF at the age of 35.

Adam Ingram: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 7 February 2002, Official Report, column 1086W, to the hon. Member for Moray (Angus Robertson).

Unaccompanied Tours (Military Units)

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the interval between six-month unaccompanied tours is for units; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The table shows the average interval between six-month unaccompanied tours broken down by individual corps over a 12-month period, as at 31 December 2001, the most recently available information.
	
		Average tour intervals (as at 31 December 2001)
		
			 Arm Months 
		
		
			 Royal Armoured Corps 15 
			 Royal Artillery 49 
			 Royal Engineers 24 
			 Royal Signals 23 
			 Infantry 18 
			 Royal Logistic Corps 24 
			 Average 24 
		
	
	Tour intervals are calculated on the basis of deployments of six months. The latest average unit tour interval in the Army is consistent with the Strategic Defence Review target of 24 months. However, there are variations between units within the Arms, with some units not achieving the SDR target.

Afghanistan

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his latest estimates are of civilian casualties as a result of US and UK military action in Afghanistan.

Adam Ingram: I refer the hon. Member to the answer that my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence gave on 12 December 2001, Official Report, column 860W, to my hon. Friends the Members for Birmingham, Selly Oak (Lynne Jones) and for Coventry, South (Mr. Cunningham).

Pay 2000

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many budget holders have not received budgets for the 2002–03 financial year which take full account of the costs of Pay 2000; and if overspend on this item will be an allowable expense.

Adam Ingram: Budgets for the 2002–03 financial year have not yet been finalised. When they are, they will take full account of all aspects of pay costs.

Recruitment

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which regiments have had their recruiting capped in the last six months; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: Individual regiments are not capped with regard to recruiting, but their priority for recruiting effort will vary dependent on their manning position at any particular time. The Army is currently recruiting to all employment areas.

Operation Amber Fox

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had regarding the possibility of the EU taking over Amber Fox in Macedonia; and if he will make a statement on his assessment of this development.

Geoff Hoon: I have had a number of discussions about the future of Operation Amber Fox. The Macedonian Government have invited NATO to extend the mandate of Task Force Fox for a further three months from 25 March 2002, with an option to extend for a further three months beyond that. NATO has accepted the invitation and Germany will continue to lead the operation. Therefore Task Force Fox remains a NATO mission.

Attributable Invalidity Pensions

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service personnel in receipt of service attributable invalidity pensions incorrectly paid tax but had the mistake rectified by the Army Pay Office in Stanmore before the case of Major Perry was identified.

Lewis Moonie: The Army Pensions Office at Stanmore was closed in 1983 and the pension work transferred to the Army Pensions Office in Glasgow. To establish the number of service personnel in receipt of service attributable invaliding pensions who incorrectly paid tax, but had the mistake rectified by the Army Pay Office at Stanmore, would require a manual search of all pension files where awards were made before 1983. This could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Kirkcudbright

Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the development of new accommodation facilities at Kirkcudbright range will be completed.

Adam Ingram: The development of new accommodation facilities at Kirkcudbright Training Camp will take place in three phases. We had hoped that Phase 1 of the new accommodation would be completed by the end of March 2003, but the restrictions on access to the site caused by the outbreak of foot and mouth disease prevented the survey and other preparatory work being carried out, and it is unlikely that this work will be completed until the end of October 2003. We estimate that Phase 2 will be completed by the end of 2007, and the final phase by the end of 2009.

PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL

Departmental Events

John Bercow: To ask the President of the Council if he will list the (a) conferences, (b) seminars, (c) workshops, (d) exhibitions and (e) press conferences which have been sponsored by his Department and which took place on non-departmental premises in each of the last four years, giving the title, purpose, date and cost of each.

Robin Cook: There were none.

Entertainment Costs

John Bercow: To ask the President of the Council if he will list for 1997–98 and for each subsequent financial year, including the current year to date, the amount spent by (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) its non- departmental public bodies on (i) food and (ii) alcohol, indicating how much was spent on guests, and how much in respect of (A) Ministers and (B) staff, broken down to show how much was provided directly by his Department and how much reclaimed.

Robin Cook: The available information is for the Privy Council Office, which has no agencies or non- departmental public bodies:
	
		cost in £ 
		
			 Financial year Food provided Alcohol provided 
		
		
			 1997–98(7) 1,172 2,356 
			 1998–99(7) 2,096 7,666 
			 1999–2000 2,089 2,257 
			 2000–01 1986 6,259 
			 2001–02(8) 1,700 950 
		
	
	(7) The figures for these financial years include refreshment costs incurred by the Lord Privy Seal's office which was then part of the Privy Council Office.
	(8) To date
	The additional, disaggregated information requested could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

PRIME MINISTER

Ministerial Boxes

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Prime Minister by what means ministerial boxes are conveyed from his private office; how frequently and at what expense private courier firms are employed for such a task; and which courier firms have been used for such duties.

Tony Blair: The majority of my ministerial boxes remain within No. 10. However, when they are transported it is either by a No. 10 driver or the Government car service.
	My office does not use a private courier service for such duties.

Business Contracts

Christopher Chope: To ask the Prime Minister on how many occasions in the past two years he has written to the (a) Head of State and (b) Prime Minister of a foreign Government about the award of contracts to companies with British interests.

Steve Webb: To ask the Prime Minister 
	(1)  if he will set out the criteria that he applies in determining in which cases he writes to foreign Heads of State in support of particular businesses;
	(2)  if he will list the occasions in the last 12 months in which he has personally written to foreign Heads of State in support of particular businesses; and if he will set out in each case (a) the recipient of the letter and (b) the businesses referred to.

Tony Blair: I refer the hon. Members to the answer I gave the hon. Member for East Carmarthen and Dinefwr (Adam Price) and the hon. Member for Isle of Wight (Mr. Turner) on 14 February 2002, Official Report, columns 610–11W.

Single European Currency

Tony Wright: To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his answer of 28 January 2002, Official Report, column 25W, on single European currency, if he will explain the connection between the question to him of 25 January and his answer of 28 January.

Tony Blair: I referred my hon. Friend to an answer which sets out the Government policy on the euro.

Voluntary Work

Bob Russell: To ask the Prime Minister how many members of his staff in each of the past two years have been granted a day's paid leave to work as a volunteer; and if he will make a statement.

Tony Blair: The Government aim to have 1 million people more involved in their communities under the "Prime Minister's Challenge on Volunteering", March 2000, which also urged employers to allow staff to take one day's paid leave to undertake some form of voluntary activity.
	In my office the project began in the summer of 2000 with approximately 24 staff arranging on their own initiative to link up with a school, where they helped out for a day and followed up with mentoring and training initiatives.

PIU Energy Review

Tom Brake: To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to the answer of 4 February 2002, Official Report, column 689W, on the performance and innovation unit energy review, if he will list those companies whose responses are not available on the PIU website; and for what reason these have not been placed on the PIU website.

Tony Blair: All companies which responded to the PIU energy review within the deadline set had their submissions placed on the website. In some cases, parts of the submissions were held back, at the request of the companies, owing to the commercially confidential nature of the material.

Departmental Energy Policy

Llew Smith: To ask the Prime Minister what measures have been taken to deploy renewable energy technologies and energy efficiency measures at (a) 10 Downing street and (b) Chequers.

Tony Blair: Since 1 October 2001 100 per cent. of the electricity supplies to 10 Downing street have been generated from renewable energy sources.
	Where appropriate, 10 Downing street purchases only equipment that conforms to the latest environmental standards for low emissions.
	The management of Chequers is the responsibility of the Chequers Trust, not the Government.

WALES

Theft and Fraud

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what his estimate is of the cost of theft and fraud to (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) non-departmental public bodies in each of the last four years.

Paul Murphy: None to my department since its creation in July 1999. The Wales Office has no agencies or non-departmental public bodies.
	Prior to that date:
	in 1997–98: £307 to the Welsh Office; £9,405 to its NDPBs; £14,000 to its agencies
	in 1998–99: £9,936 to its agencies.

Statistics

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make representations to the Office for National Statistics to increase the frequency of preparing figures on productivity and economic indicators for Wales.

Paul Murphy: No. The Office for National Statistics is actively working to improve the quality and timeliness of economic estimates for Wales. They are liaising closely with the National Assembly to take account of the particular needs of Wales and to help inform the National Assembly's economic development strategy.

Fair Trade Fortnight

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what steps he is taking to encourage participation by his Department in Fair Trade Fortnight from 4 to 17 March.

Paul Murphy: My Department has no plans to participate in Fair Trade Fortnight. The Department for International Development is providing £120,000 to the Fair Trade Foundation over 2001–03 in support of its efforts to target new groups through its annual Fair Trade Fortnight campaigns.

Fair Trade Fortnight

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, pursuant to his answer of 16 November 2001, Official Report, column 939W, on fair trade goods, if, during Fair Trade Fortnight, he will review the amount of fairly traded goods used in his Department.

Paul Murphy: My Department has very limited requirements for the type of goods which are subject to fair trade schemes and therefore has no current plans for a specific review during Fair Trade Fortnight on the use of fairly traded goods.

City of London Corporation (Events)

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list those functions, engagements and events which Ministers, his officials and advisers have attended which have been sponsored, funded, promoted and hosted by the City of London Corporation since 1997.

Paul Murphy: The information is not held centrally and collating it would involve disproportionate costs.
	Attendance at events, engagements and functions by Ministers and civil servants is undertaken in line with the guidance and principles set out in the Ministerial Code and departmental staff handbooks.

Fraud

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what estimate his Department has made of the cost to its budget since 1 May 1997 of fraud; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Murphy: There were reported thefts against the former Welsh Office in 1997–98 of £307. There was no known theft or fraud against the Welsh Office in the remainder of its life; nor has there been against the Wales Office since its creation.

Euro

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with the Treasury and the Minister for Europe with regard to the impact of the euro on Wales.

Paul Murphy: I have regular discussions with my right hon. Friends the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Minister for Europe when we discuss a range of issues including the impact of the euro on Wales.
	The Government are committed to undertaking an economic assessment of the likely impact of joining the euro, within two years of the start of this Parliament.
	Meanwhile, the Euro Taskforce has been established to help businesses take forward preparations and to raise awareness of the opportunities already presented by the introduction of euro notes and coins by a number of our European partners.

Sand Dredging

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with secretaries in the National Assembly for Wales with regards to the practice of sand dredging off the Welsh coast.

Paul Murphy: I regularly meet Assembly Secretaries; we discuss a range of issues.
	The Assembly issued a draft marine aggregate dredging policy for consultation last year. The 1,200 responses received are being considered and a final version of the document will be published in due course, setting out a framework within which the Assembly will determine applications to dredge for sand.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Public Libraries

David Miliband: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many public libraries are not on-line.

Kim Howells: 67 per cent. of all UK public libraries now offer public internet access. All will do so by the end of the year. £120 million of lottery money is being made available to equip libraries with ICT to support learning and to train library staff.

Public Libraries

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps she is taking to improve public libraries; and if she will make a statement.

Kim Howells: The Government have encouraged better planning and accountability in public library services through the introduction of Annual Library Plans and a more rigorous enforcement of the Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964. Standards of service for library authorities were introduced from 1 April 2001.
	Through the New Opportunities Fund Community Access to Lifelong Learning Programme, £120 million of lottery funding is being made available to enable all public libraries to offer public internet access and ICT learning facilities by December 2002. The DCMS/ Wolfson Public Libraries Challenge Fund made available over £2.3 million in 2000–01 for British history and reader development projects.

Public Libraries

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent assessment she has made of library provision within East Sussex.

Kim Howells: East Sussex along with all other English library authorities submitted their Annual Library Plan at the end of September 2001. Individual and confidential feedback was given to each of the 149 library authorities in December, and a general appraisal of all the plans will be published in the near future. A copy of this appraisal will be placed in the House Library.

Museums (English Regions)

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will include millennium landmark projects in discussions on supporting museums in the English regions.

Tessa Jowell: Recommendations for a new framework for museums and galleries in England's regions were set out in Resource: The Council for Museums, Archives and Libraries' report "Renaissance in the regions: a new vision for England's museums", published last October. Although that report was concerned only with museums which have been recognised through Resource's Museum Registration Scheme, we anticipate that the new framework should allow museums to form partnerships with other relevant organisations. Such partnerships might include millennium landmark projects.

BBC (Finances)

Robert Syms: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans the Government have to change the financing arrangements for the BBC.

Tessa Jowell: I have no plans to change the financing arrangements for the BBC.

Diving

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on the safety of sports diving, with specific reference to the recent deaths of divers at the Dorothea quarry.

Richard Caborn: The Government recognise that all sport contains an element of risk, and it would be neither possible nor, in many cases, desirable to remove that challenge. The sport of sub-aqua diving is an adventure sport and therefore subject to such risks.
	However, it is essential to look at how sport can reduce and manage unnecessary risks and, in particular, reduce the incidence of serious illness, injury, permanent disablement or death. The recognised governing body of the sport of sub-aqua diving in the UK, the British Sub-Aqua Club (BSAC) has compiled recommendations for safe diving practices. The Government would expect those taking part in diving activities to heed the guidance produced by the sport's governing body to ensure their safe participation.
	I understand that the police, in liaison with other agencies are making inquiries into the incidents at the Doreathea quarry. I would not want to say anything further that might prejudice those inquiries.
	Sport is a devolved matter and as I understand it the Minister for Sport in the National Assembly for Wales would welcome the opportunity to discuss the hon. Gentlemen's concerns with him.

Olympic Games 2012

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what support the Government will give to an English bid to host the 2012 Olympic games.

Richard Caborn: The decision on whether or not to launch a bid for the Olympic Games is a matter principally for the British Olympic Association which has yet to decide whether to make a bid for the 2012 Games. The issue of whether there should be any Government support for such a bid will only be taken once the decision to bid has been made.
	My Department in conjunction with the BOA, UK Sport, London Development Agency and Sport England has commissioned Arups to undertake a cost-benefit analysis of a possible London bid for 2012. That consultancy will include an assessment of the level of public and private funding that would be required to mount a successful bid and, if successful, to stage the Games.

English Heritage

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on the review of English Heritage.

Tessa Jowell: The review of English Heritage was announced on 16 October 2001 and is being undertaken as part of the Department's programme of quinquennial reviews of its public bodies. A public consultation exercise has been carried out and we are evaluating the many helpful responses that were received. The review will be completed and published later this year.

Tourism

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans her Department has to encourage and extend best practice in the UK tourism and hospitality industries.

Kim Howells: My Department is working closely with the Best Practice Forum, which was launched on 25 September 2001 to identify, encourage and spread best practice throughout tourism, hospitality and leisure businesses in England. The programme includes a £500,000 research study of best practice in the UK and abroad as well as access to best practice clubs and master class seminars.
	In addition, seaside resorts continue to represent a very important sector of our domestic holiday market and sharing good practice between resort destinations is essential to their future success. The English Tourism Council's Sea Changes report, published in response to the Government's tourism strategy, highlighted a variety of areas of good practice within resorts, including examples from Blackpool.

Philosophy

Tony McWalter: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what activities and funding decisions by her Department provide support for philosophy as a cultural activity.

Kim Howells: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport funds both directly and indirectly many organisations that engage in philosophical activity through their programming, performance or exhibitions. The exploration of philosophical themes is an important part of many cultural bodies' work and it is a matter for them as to how best to approach the subject. Support for philosophy as an academic discipline is a matter for the Department for Education and Skills.

Athletics

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to establish a centre of excellence for British athletics.

Tessa Jowell: In line with the requests of UK Athletics, a network of 11 regional indoor athletic tracks is being developed as part of the United Kingdom Sports Institute. These facilities will also include state of the art sports medicine and sports science support. With the exception of the facilities in Northern Ireland the sites are all due for completion by the summer of 2003 at a cost of over £50 million and will help our top athletes and their coaches compete and win at the highest level.

Local Sports Clubs

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on the Government's plans for local sports clubs.

Richard Caborn: Local clubs remain at the heart of the Government's sports strategy. As I outlined in my answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Chorley (Mr. Hoyle), Official Report, 25 February 2002, column 433, DCMS is taking forward work to advance the interests of local clubs as the Government consider the responses to the Treasury consultation document, "Promoting Sport in the Community".

Amateur Football Clubs

David Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions she has had with the Football Association on promoting the establishment of new amateur football clubs in England.

Richard Caborn: Neither my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State nor I have discussed the promotion of new amateur clubs with the Football Association, though I have discussed the issue of funding support for existing amateur clubs with the Association. Both new and established clubs may apply for funding to the Football Foundation's Grass Roots Advisory Panel or, where appropriate, to the Community and Education Fund.

Amateur Football Clubs

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to encourage amateur football clubs.

Richard Caborn: The importance of amateur clubs to the health of football at all levels is recognised by the Government and the Football Foundation. With the Football Association and the FA Premier League, the Government continue to fully support the Foundation's work in funding the development of the sport at the grass roots.

Sport Development

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to improve the development of sport at grassroots level in areas of deprivation.

Richard Caborn: "A Sporting Future for All" (Department for Culture, Media and Sport, April 2000) set out the Government's strategy for sport, and formed the basis for the subsequent "Government's Plan for Sport". The strategy addresses all levels of sport, including the grassroots level, and both documents explore how sport can promote the social, economic and environmental well-being of communities. More specifically, Sport England have launched a number of Sport Action Zones (SAZs) which, with assistance from lottery funding, are aiming to improve sports provision in deprived areas. To date £1.6 million has been invested in sport from partner funding as a result of SAZ initiatives. In addition, Sport England's Space for Sport and Arts programme is providing £130 million for new of modernised sport and arts facilities in 300 primary schools across the most deprived areas of 65 LEAs, and the level of multiple deprivation index accounted for 50 per cent. of the weighting when the New Opportunities Fund allocated its £581 million for new opportunities for PE and school sport to LEAs across England.

National Lottery

Hywel Francis: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many lottery applications have been made in Wales by parliamentary constituency (a) since its inception and (b) since January 2001.

Tessa Jowell: Comprehensive information on applications for lottery grants is not centrally held at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

National Lottery

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on progress being made to improve distribution of lottery funds.

Richard Caborn: Reforms introduced under the 1998 National Lottery Act, revised policy directions issued to lottery distributors in the same year, and targeted programmes introduced by distributors are designed to improve the distribution of funds and our data show that there has been some improvement. We recognise, however, that there is still more to be done and that is why I have announced a new £150 million initiative to target funds at some 50 areas which are both deprived and have received less lottery funding than other parts of the country. The scheme, which is UK wide, will begin later this year.

National Lottery

Paul Goggins: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many lottery tickets have been purchased; and what the value is of grant made in Wythenshawe and Sale, East since November 1994.

Tessa Jowell: National Lottery tickets sales total just over £35 billion. Since the start of the lottery, 75 awards have been made to Wythenshawe and Sale, East worth just over £5.4 million.

Court Cases (Children)

Clive Soley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent discussions she has had with representatives of the media on their treatment of children in court cases.

Tessa Jowell: None.

Orchestras

Richard Bacon: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on her Department's financial support for orchestras.

Tessa Jowell: This is a matter for the Arts Council of England and the regional arts boards. As well as increasing the core grant-in-aid to each of the regional orchestras, awards of nearly £27 million have been made from the Arts Council's Stabilisation programme to help secure orchestral provision across the country.

National Football Stadium

Claire Ward: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent meetings she has had with Mr. Patrick Carter, the Football Association and other interested parties regarding the new national football stadium.

Richard Caborn: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State last met Patrick Carter on 13 February 2002 and the Football Association's Communication Director on 4 February 2002, where discussion included the National Football Stadium.
	In addition we are receiving regular updates and briefings from our officials who are working closely with the FA, Sport England and others to help them resolve the issues we have asked to be addressed before we can give our final commitment to the FA's plans.

Golden Jubilee

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much financial and administrative support her Department has allocated to the Golden Jubilee events.

Richard Caborn: £10.5 million over three years was transferred to my Department by the Home Office from their existing vote. There was therefore no additional call on the exchequer. The sum includes the cost of the 21 staff of the Golden Jubilee office.

Golden Jubilee

Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent representations she has received on the Golden Jubilee celebrations; and if she will make a statement.

Tessa Jowell: During the last month I have received letters and questions from hon. Members and the public about the regulations governing street parties and the exclusion of various groups from the criteria for the award of the Golden Jubilee medal.

Wembley Stadium

Peter Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to her statement of 19 December 2001, Official Report, columns 291–93, if she will require Wembley National Stadium Ltd. to publish the findings of the report into its relationship with Multiplex as a condition of the Government's continuing support for the development of the national football stadium at Wembley.

Tessa Jowell: holding answer 13 February 2002
	As I explained in my statement, the disclosure of the report produced for the Wembley National Stadium Ltd. Board into the procurement processes relating to the National Stadium project is affected by issues of legal professional privilege and confidentiality. I have asked the Football Association and WNSL to publish it, but because of these issues they are unwilling to do so. The Government do not intend to make its publication a requirement of the Government's support for the project but I will not grant ultimate support unless I am fully assured that the concerns highlighted by the David James/Berwin Leighton Paisner report have been satisfactorily addressed.

Wembley Stadium

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the projected increased costs are for a proposed new Wembley Stadium; and how much extra funding the Government will be required to contribute.

Richard Caborn: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State set out the Government's position on the Football Association's national stadium project to the House on 19 December 2001, Official Report, columns 291–303. My right hon. Friend also laid before the House on that day the interim report of the English National Stadium Review Team which set out the costs of the revised World Stadium Team design at £715 million including sunk costs. The interim report also set out how these costs would be funded including a Government contribution of up to £20 million for non-stadium infrastructure costs.

Museums and Galleries (North-west)

Tony Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to support the creation of a regional hub for museums and galleries in the north-west.

Tessa Jowell: My right hon. and noble Friend the Minister for the Arts announced on 22 January the timetable for the selection of regional hubs in accordance with the recommendations of the Regional Museums Task Force as set out in the report "Renaissance in the Regions: a new vision for England's museums" which was published last October. Resource: the Council for Museums, Libraries and Archives have subsequently published draft criteria for the selection of regional hubs. It is for the museums in each region, including the north-west, to determine the nature of the application to resource to form a hub.

Listed Buildings

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  what steps she has taken to press for the establishment of a differentiated rate of VAT for repairs and renovations to listed buildings in the European Commission review of reduced rates of VAT;
	(2)  what steps she has taken to establish an action plan and timetable to consider the establishment of a differentiated rate of VAT for repairs to listed buildings, in line with paragraph 4.20 of Force for Our Future.

Kim Howells: EC law already allows a reduced rate of VAT for works to housing but does not permit a reduced rate to other types of building, whether listed or not. However, in response to representations made by the Government, the European Commission has indicated that it will consider a reduced rate of VAT for listed places of worship in their general review of the reduced rates, which is due to take place in 2003. In the meantime the Government have introduced a grant scheme which will return in grant aid the difference between 5 per cent. and the actual amount spent on eligible repairs and maintenance to listed places of worship. We intend to publish an implementation plan for A Force for Our Future shortly.

Advertising

Alex Salmond: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  what the cost was of media advertising in each of the past five parliamentary Sessions including the current Session, for her Department in (a) England, (b) Wales and (c) Northern Ireland; and for the last two parliamentary Sessions and the current parliamentary Session, what the media advertising expenditure was per month in (i) England, (ii) Wales and (iii) Northern Ireland;
	(2)  what the expenditure was per campaign for the five most expensive media advertising campaigns her Department undertook in the past five parliamentary Sessions including the current parliamentary Session in (a) Scotland, (b) England, (c) Wales and (d) Northern Ireland; and for the last two parliamentary Sessions and the current Session, when each advertising campaign (i) began and (ii) ended in (A) Scotland, (B) England, (C) Wales and (D) Northern Ireland.

Kim Howells: No media advertising campaigns were run by the Department during this period.

Minority Sports Teams

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what sources of funding are available from the public sector to cover the cost of overseas international matches for teams representing Great Britain in minority sports.

Richard Caborn: My Department provides Lottery and Exchequer funds to UK Sports who in turn make these funds available to governing bodies of sport in recognised activities for the support of teams representing Great Britain.

Minority Sports Teams

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what rules for the allocation of funding to international minority sports teams representing Great Britain relate to the (a) age and (b) sex of the participants.

Richard Caborn: The Sports Councils do not have rules for the allocation of funding to sports teams representing Great Britain relating to either age or sex of the participants.

Departmental Staff

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many overseas visits have been undertaken by parliamentary private secretaries in her Department at departmental expense in each of the last four years; and at what cost to public funds.

Richard Caborn: The only overseas visit by a parliamentary private secretary at this Department's expense occurred on 20–21 January 2002 when my hon. Friend the Member for Harlow (Mr. Rammell) attended the MIDEM conference in France on my behalf as I was unable to attend at short notice. We have yet to be invoiced for these costs.

Civil Servants

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what was the (a) percentage and number of rail journeys undertaken on first class tickets, (b) average cost of a first class journey by rail and (c) total cost of rail travel in each of the past four years broken down by grade of civil servant.

Kim Howells: In DCMS travel and subsistence administration is contracted out and there is no electronic record maintained regarding mode of travel. To provide this information would involve a manual check of each travel and subsistence claim which could be undertaken only at disproportionate costs.

Arts and Community-based Programmes

Martin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what role arts and community-based programmes are playing in helping sectarian and racial problems in divided cities in Northern Ireland.

Kim Howells: This question relates to a matter which is the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Assembly and Executive.

Regeneration (Northern Ireland)

Martin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on how lottery money is used to promote regeneration in Northern Ireland; and how much has been given to North Belfast.

Richard Caborn: The Government have asked lottery distributors to use lottery funding to encourage regeneration where possible. Revised policy directions issued to lottery distributors in 1998 require them to take into account the scope for reducing economic and social deprivation. As of 15 February 2002, 276 awards have been made to Belfast North worth over £67 million.

Playing Fields

Joan Ryan: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate she has made of the number of playing fields lost to development in each of the last five years for which figures are available; and how many were (a) school playing fields, (b) owned by other public bodies and (c) owned privately.

Richard Caborn: The Department for Education and Skills does not collect information on the number of school playing fields lost to development. Section 77 of the School Standards and Framework Act in October 1998, was brought in to halt the policy of forcing state schools to sell off playing fields. Local authorities and governing bodies of all maintained schools now need to ask consent for the sale of school playing fields from my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Education and Skills. In making her decision my right hon. Friend will take into account a number of criteria including consultation with the community and user groups, whether the proceeds will be used for education or used to enhance sports provision, and whether the remaining playing fields fully meet the needs of local schools and the communities. Since October 1998, My right hon. Friend has approved the following applications to dispose or change the use of school playing fields:
	
		Number approved 
		
			 Year Sports pitch applications Areas less than a sports pitch 
		
		
			 1998 6 3 
			 1999 37 40 
			 2000 28 29 
			 2001 27 5 
			 2002 5 — 
		
	
	No such estimates have been made on the number of playing fields sold to development which are either privately owned or owned by public bodies as this information is not collected. Sport England do however, monitor the number of planning applications concerning playing fields in their role as statutory consultee. The Government intend to publish, with Sport England, detailed national statistics on planning applications concerning playing fields when the data are finalised in the spring.

Industrial Action

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many days have been lost owing to industrial action by staff in her Department, agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each of the last four years.

Kim Howells: The information in respect of DCMS and its agencies is contained in the table.
	
		
			  Number of staff(9) How many days allocated Cost to public funds (£) 
		
		
			 1997–98 21 316 72,100 
			 1998–99 21 316 74,695 
			 1999–2000 15 256 62,570 
			 2000–01 15 256 75,475 
		
	
	(9) In DCMS and agencies receiving paid leave to undertake union duties
	The time scale for response to this question does not allow for this information to be obtained for non- departmental public bodies.

Union Duties

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many staff in her Department, agencies and non-departmental public bodies receive paid leave to undertake union duties; how many days they are allocated; and what has been the cost to public funds in each of the last four years.

Kim Howells: During this period there was no industrial action in the Department or its agencies. The time scale for response to this question does not allow for this information to be obtained for non-departmental public bodies.

Publicity Expenditure

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the total real terms expenditure of her Department, its agencies and non-departmental public bodies on publicity in each of the years (a) 1997–98, (b) 1998–99, (c) 1999–2000, (d) 2000–01 and (e) 2001–02 (i) to date and (ii) as estimated for the whole of the present year; and if she will break these figures down to indicate expenditure on (A) advertising and (B) press and public relations.

Kim Howells: Using the GDP deflators notified by HM Treasury, the Department's real term expenditure on press and public relations since 1997–98 based on 2001–02 prices was:
	
		
			  £ 
		
		
			 1997–98 541,483 
			 1998–99 503,476 
			 1999–2000 795,289 
			 2000–01 795,302 
			 2001–02 (10)602,700 
		
	
	(10) Estimated outturn
	No advertising expenditure was incurred by the Department during this period.
	The information requested for the Department's agencies and non-departmental public bodies is not held centrally and the costs of collating it would be disproportionate.

Health and Safety (Computers)

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many employees in her Department who regularly use computers have taken up the provision of a free eye test; and how this service is advertised to (a) current and (b) new staff.

Kim Howells: Computer use is almost 100 per cent. across the Department. Of a staff of 450 some 67 (14.8 per cent.) have availed themselves of the free eye test provision during the 10 months of this financial year. The availability of, and entitlement to, eye test vouchers is set out in an induction pack and on the induction session given to all new staff. Office notices are used to draw attention to all staff matters including eye care vouchers and the subject is a permanent item on the departmental intranet accessible by all staff.

Throckmorton Airfield

Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what consideration is being given to designating land on and around the Throckmorton airfield as an ancient monument; and if she will make a statement.

Kim Howells: Under the Monuments Protection Programme, this Department and English Heritage are undertaking a systematic review of England's archaeological resource, with a view to providing statutory protection, through scheduling, to those sites identified as being of national importance. Once a site has been scheduled, specific consent has to be obtained from my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State before any works can be carried out that could damage the monument.
	We are, of course, prepared to look at sites which are under threat, or of particular significance, out of sequence. I understand that English Heritage is currently considering whether land on and around Throckmorton airfield merits scheduling, following archaeological investigation work undertaken there last year in response to the excavation of foot and mouth mass burial pits. English Heritage will be making recommendations to my Department shortly.

Camelot

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what action the Government propose to take if Camelot fail to achieve its target of £15 billion for good causes over the seven year length of the contract.

Richard Caborn: Camelot's bid for the second National Lottery licence forecasts sales at a level which would yield £15 billion for good causes over the licence period; but this was not a contractual commitment. It is for the National Lottery Commission, exercising its independent responsibilities under the National Lottery Acts 1993 and 1998, to supervise Camelot's operation of the licence and enforce its conditions.

Government Expenditure (Sports Associations)

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what was the total Government expenditure, excluding National Lottery grants, to sports associations within Great Britain in each financial year since 1994–95.

Richard Caborn: Government funding for national governing bodies of sport and other sports organisations is channelled through the Sports Councils. The exchequer funding provided for such bodies in England and for UK wide bodies is as follows. Funding for sport in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland is a devolved matter and an issue for those Administrations.
	
		
			  £ million 
		
		
			 1994–95 11.34 
			 1995–96 13.24 
			 1996–97 11.12 
			 1997–98 14.75 
			 1998–99 13.69 
			 1999–2000 13.81 
			 2000–01 14.37

Departmental Website

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the total cost of her Department's website was in real terms in each of the last four years; and how many hits it received in each of those years.

Kim Howells: The website was redeveloped two years ago at a cost of £81,134. Prior to that, the site was developed in-house at zero cost. The website is maintained in-house at zero cost. The hosting cost is £5,000 per year.
	We do not retain website statistics beyond the current year. The number of hits over the year is of the order of 4,160,000.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Afghanistan

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to ensure that British citizens detained (a) by United States, (b) United Front and (c) other local forces in Afghanistan (i) have their rights respected, (ii) are not subjected to cruel or unusual conditions or punishments and (iii) are not placed in other jurisdictions against their will.

Ben Bradshaw: We are in regular contact with the US authorities about British nationals detained by them. They have said that the detainees are being treated humanely and consistently with the principles of the Geneva Conventions. The question of jurisdiction is a matter for the US as the Detaining Power. We have asked the interim Afghan authorities to notify us of any British nationals detained by them and have said that all prisoners must be treated in accordance with international practice.

Afghanistan

Ann Clwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether British officials will have access to UK nationals held in Guantanamo Bay and Afghanistan without the presence of representatives of the US.

Ben Bradshaw: Access to the detainees is a matter for the US as the Detaining Power.

Afghanistan

Ann Clwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will take steps to ensure that UK citizens held prisoner in Guantanamo Bay are sent before a competent tribunal to determine whether they are entitled to prisoner of war status.

Ben Bradshaw: This is a matter for the US as the Detaining Power. The US authorities said in their statement of 7 February that they have no doubt that the Taliban and al-Qaeda detainees are not prisoners of war, and that the Geneva Convention requires a tribunal only where there is any doubt.
	They also confirmed that, notwithstanding the question of status, all detainees would continue to be treated humanely and consistently with the principles of the Geneva Conventions.

Afghanistan

Ann Clwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the two British nationals who are detained in Kandahar by the US authorities are being held under the conditions of the Geneva Convention.

Ben Bradshaw: The two British nationals who were being detained in Kandahar were transferred to Guantanamo Bay on 11 February. The US authorities have said that all detainees are being treated humanely and consistently with the principles of the Geneva Conventions.

Afghanistan

Ann Clwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will urge the US authorities to charge the UK citizens who are detained in Guantanamo Bay with violations of criminal law.

Ben Bradshaw: That is a matter for the US authorities once evidence has been gathered and analysed. The US is aware of our desire that this should proceed as quickly as is practicable.

Afghanistan

Ann Clwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he is making to the US Administration regarding the application of Article 5 of the Geneva Convention to prisoners held in US custody in Cuba and Afghanistan.

Denis MacShane: We remain in regular contact with the Americans on many aspects of this matter.
	The US authorities said in their statement of 7 February that they have no doubt that the Taliban and al-Qaedi detainees are not prisoners of war and that the Geneva Convention requires a tribunal only if there is any doubt.
	They again confirmed that, notwithstanding the question of status, all detainees would continue to be treated humanely and consistently with the principles of the Geneva Convention.

Gibraltar

George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate he has made of the annual cost of the United Kingdom's role and responsibilities in Gibraltar.

Peter Hain: The main costs arising from the UK's role and responsibilities in Gibraltar fall to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Ministry of Defence. The approximate cost to the two Departments in the financial year 2000–01 was £63.5 million. £3.5 million of this total was the cost of maintaining the Governor's office, the cost of the staff in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office dealing directly with Gibraltar, and also funding for projects and secondments under the Gibraltar Project Fund. The remainder of the cost was attributable to Commander British Forces Gibraltar.

Contracts

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many contracts were let by his Department and agencies for which he is responsible to (a) PWC Consulting or PricewaterhouseCoopers, (b) Ernst & Young, (c) Deloitte & Touche, (d) KPMG and (e) Andersen for consultancy services for the financial years (i) 1997–98, (ii) 1998–99, (iii) 1999–2000, (iv) 2000–01 and (v) 2001 to the latest date for which figures are available, indicating the remuneration in each case.

Denis MacShane: The number of contracts let by FCO and its agency to these companies and the payments to each of them over the period concerned is as follows:
	(i) Ernst and Young: 4 contracts:
	
		
			 Year £ 
		
		
			 1997–98 nil 
			 1998–99 58,441 
			 1999–2000 55,107 
			 2000–01 nil 
			 2001–02 4,700 
		
	
	(ii) KPMG: 5 contracts:
	
		
			 Year £ 
		
		
			 1997–98 nil 
			 1998–99 nil 
			 1999–2000 308,874 
			 2000–01 4,093,390 
			 2001–02 2,013,554 
		
	
	(iii) PWC Consulting/PricewaterhouseCoopers: 1 contract:
	
		
			 Year £ 
		
		
			 1997–98 nil 
			 1998–99 759,520 
			 1999–2000 54,337 
			 2000–01 nil 
			 2001–02 nil 
		
	
	No contracts were awarded to Deloitte & Touche or Andersen during this period.

Departmental Events

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the (a) conferences, (b) seminars, (c) workshops, (d) exhibitions and (e) press conferences which have been sponsored by his Department and which took place on non-departmental premises in each of the last four years, giving the title, purpose, date and cost of each.

Denis MacShane: The information requested is not held centrally by any one department in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and could be collected only at disproportionate cost.

Entertainment Costs

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  if he will list, for 1997–98 and for each subsequent financial year, the amount spent (a) in the United Kingdom and (b) abroad by (i) his Department, (ii) its agencies and (iii) its non-departmental public bodies on (1) providing mobile telephone equipment, including handsets and other associated equipment, (2) telephone calls made using such equipment and (3) telephone calls made using privately owned mobile telephones but subsequently reclaimed by (x) Ministers and (y) staff;
	(2)  if he will list for 1997–98 and for each subsequent financial year, including the current year to date, the amount spent by (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) its non-departmental public bodies on (i) food and (ii) alcohol, indicating how much was spent on guests, and how much in respect of (A) Ministers and (B) staff, broken down to show how much was provided directly by his Department and how much reclaimed.

Denis MacShane: Information is not held in the form required and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Publications

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the publications issued by his Department in each of the last four years; and what the (a) circulation, (b) cost and (c) purpose of each was.

Denis MacShane: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 11 December 2001, Official Report, column 825W and to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Moray (Angus Robertson) on 10 December 2001, Official Report, column 627W.
	Details of current FCO publications are available on a dedicated website at www.informationfrombritain.com.
	It would incur disproportionate cost to list the circulation and unit costs of all individual publications for the four years.

Trade Deals (India)

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what trade deals were (a) discussed and (b) finalised during the Prime Minister's recent visit to India.

Ben Bradshaw: During the recent visit to India by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister a number of trade issues were discussed. He gave the keynote speech at the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) conference in Bangalore and signed the New Delhi Declaration with Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee which highlighted the success of the growth, to £5 billion a year, of bilateral trade since the Indo-British Partnership was introduced in 1993. The declaration stated that we will focus together on key sectors where we share world class expertise, such as IT and healthcare, and announced the plan by the CII and CBI to hold a major economic seminar in London in July 2002 involving senior CEOs from both countries, to look at the global challenges we face together and to explore future opportunities for enhancing the trade and investment relationship.
	The Prime Minister discussed a number of defence and security matters while in India, including defence export opportunities. The Government continue to support the proposals that BAE Systems has made for the supply of Hawk jets to India.

Western Sahara

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations have been made to the Government of France concerning oil exploration licences in the western Sahara by French companies; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The issue of contracts for oil exploration in western Sahara signed by Morocco with US and French companies was referred by the President of the United Nations Security Council to the United Nations legal adviser, who concluded that the specific contracts at issue were "not in themselves illegal".
	This matter has not been raised with the French Government.

Western Sahara

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what meetings he and his officials have had with representatives of the Government of Morocco to discuss the occupation of the western Sahara; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs met His Excellency Mohammed Benaissa, the Foreign Minister of Morocco, during his visit to the UK on 21 February 2002.
	They discussed the situation in western Sahara. My right hon. Friend stated our position: that we continue to support the efforts of James Baker, the Personal Envoy of the United Nations Secretary General, in trying to find a just and durable resolution to the dispute.

Western Sahara

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the expenditure in each of the past five years by the UK Government have been on the western Sahara people by (a) bilateral projects, (b) UN arrangements and (c) direct funding; and what is expected for the next financial year.

Ben Bradshaw: UK Government expenditure on the western Sahara people under UN arrangements for the past five years is as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
		
		
			 1996–97 641,173 
			 1997–98 934,360 
			 1998–99 2,369,371 
			 1999–2000 1,014,550 
			 2000–01 1,984,177 
		
	
	In the next financial year, the expenditure is expected to be £2,018,815.
	I refer my hon. Friend to the Secretary of State for International Development for information on expenditure on the other categories.

Western Sahara

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he and his officials have had with the UN Secretary-General and his special representative concerning the future of the western Sahara; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The Secretary-General recently reported to the UN Security Council on his continuing discussions with the parties in the dispute concerning western Sahara. In these discussions he has been supported by James Baker his Personal Envoy.
	He observed that the parties, despite assertions to the contrary, had not been willing to co-operate with the UN either to implement the Settlement Plan or to try a 'political solution' to their dispute. He set out four options and recommended that the council extend MINURSO's mandate for two months while these were considered. The options were:
	Option 1
	The UN could try and resume implementation of the Settlement Plan, but without requiring the concurrence of the parties before action could be taken. The UN could still face the same problems it had already encountered and might not be able to hold a free and fair referendum whose results would be accepted by both sides. There remained the issue that there was no enforcement mechanism set out in the plan.
	Option 2
	Mr. James Baker, the Personal Envoy of the United Nations Secretary-General, could revise the draft Framework Agreement, taking into account the concerns expressed by the parties. But Mr. Baker would not seek their concurrence. The revised draft would be submitted to the council, and would then be presented to the parties on a non-negotiable basis.
	Option 3
	The council could ask Mr. Baker to explore with the parties one final time whether they would be willing to discuss a possible division of the territory, under his usual negotiating rule of nothing agreed until everything was agreed. If this option were chosen and the parties were unwilling to agree to a division by 1 November 2002, Mr. Baker should be asked to show the parties a proposal for division of the territory that would also be presented to the council. The council would then present this to the parties on a non-negotiable basis. This approach would give each side some, but not all, of what it wanted and would follow the precedent, but not necessarily the territorial arrangements, of the division agreed to in 1976 between Morocco and Mauritania.
	Option 4
	The council could decide to terminate MINURSO, thereby recognising and acknowledging that after more than 11 years and half a billion dollars expenditure that the UN was not going to solve the dispute without requiring that one or the other of the parties do something voluntarily that they did not wish to do.
	In responding to the Secretary-General's report the UK will agree to the two month roll-over of the MINURSO mandate to allow consideration of the options. The UK position remains as previously stated, that we continue to support the efforts of Mr. Baker in trying to find a just and durable resolution to the dispute.

European Council (Barcelona)

Richard Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what proposals the Government will be making to the European Council at Barcelona on the furthering of the e-Europe initiative; and if he will make a statement.

Douglas Alexander: I have been asked to reply.
	There has been encouraging progress since the Lisbon summit of March 2000 towards its goal of making Europe the most competitive knowledge-based economy in the world. As the Commission has stated in its report to Heads of State and Government for the Barcelona Spring European Council on Economic Reform, telephone calls are cheaper and there is a greater choice of operators everywhere. The number of homes connected to the internet has doubled. In all but one member state, over 90 per cent. of schools have access to the internet. These results show that the eEurope Action Plan 2002 is well on track towards its objective of bringing the internet within reach of all European consumers, businesses, schools, and Governments by the end of this year. The next stage must be to maintain this momentum by encouraging the conditions for it to be used as fully as possible. A key step will be encouraging widespread broadband technology. Higher-speed, "always on" connections will make using the internet more attractive and will stimulate the development of new interactive services.
	I attended an Informal Council of Information Society Ministers on 22 February. We discussed the progress of eEurope and how it should be followed up. I expect that the results of these discussions will be forwarded to the forthcoming Barcelona summit.

European Council (Barcelona)

Richard Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what proposals the Government will be making to the European Council at Barcelona on the liberalisation of the European energy market; and if he will make a statement.

Brian Wilson: I have been asked to reply.
	We will continue to press for early adoption of the Commission's proposals, which require full liberalisation of EU electricity and gas markets by 2005.

EU Accession Criteria

Denzil Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of (a) the ratio of borrowing to GDP and (b) the proportion of public debt to GDP as laid down by the treaty of Maastricht and the growth and stability pact in 2004 of each of the countries applying for EU membership.

Ruth Kelly: I have been asked to reply.
	The multilateral surveillance procedure set out in Article 99 of the EC treaty and in the stability and growth pact applies only on accession to the EU.
	Assessment of applicant countries' readiness for EU membership will be based on the criteria agreed at the Copenhagen European Council in 1993.

Missile Threat

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the states which he estimates have the capacity to launch missiles that could reach the territory of the United Kingdom.

Geoff Hoon: I have been asked to reply.
	We assess that there is currently no significant ballistic or other missile threat to the United Kingdom and that only the four other nuclear weapon states (the United States, Russia, China and France) have ballistic missile systems with the range to reach the United Kingdom mainland. We continue to monitor developments closely.

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

Statutory Instruments

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will list the statutory instruments issued by her Department in the last 12 months, indicating (a) the purpose of each and (b) the cost of each to (i) public funds, (ii) businesses and (iii) individuals.

Ivan Lewis: holding answer 13 February 2002
	A list of the statutory instruments issued by the Department in the last 12 months and the purpose of each has been placed in the Library.
	Information about the cost of statutory instruments made to public funds is not held centrally and would cost a disproportionate amount to establish. Similarly, the cost to businesses and individuals is not held centrally and is not available.
	As from 1 March 2002, Explanatory Memoranda will be provided for all affirmative statutory instruments as announced by the Leader of the House on Friday 1 February 2002.

Public Appointments

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many people have been appointed by her to official bodies and NDPBs coming under the aegis of her Department in the last three years; and who they were.

Ivan Lewis: The total number of public appointments made to non-departmental public bodies since 1 January 1999 is 312. The details of each appointment are contained in tables, copies of which have been placed in the Library.

Post-16 Education (Funding)

Angela Browning: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what was the gross funding of the (a) Further Education Funding Council and training and enterprise councils in the last full financial year and (b) Learning and Skills Council in its first financial year.

John Healey: holding answer 13 February 2002
	The Further Education Funding Council (FEFC) accounts for 2000–01 are not yet available, but planned total funding for the FEFC for all purposes in 2000–01 was £3,530 million, excluding student support funds and employer contributions. The Department for Education and Employment (DfEE) paid a total of £1,270 million to Training and Enterprise Councils in 2000–01.
	The Learning and Skills Councils budget for 2001–02 is £5,493 million, excluding assumed employer contributions. This represents a 9 per cent. real terms increase compared to plans for 2000–01 in the same area.

Housing (Teachers)

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills for each local education authority, how many specialist housing units for teachers have been created in the past year.

Stephen Timms: The Department for Education and Skills has not created any specialist housing units for teachers in the past year. However, as part of the £250 million Starter Homes Initiative, more than 3,500 teachers will receive assistance in purchasing homes in areas of high demand or high price. In September 2001 we announced the first round of the Initiative, which aimed to help more than 2,800 teachers. In January of this year we announced that a further 700 teachers would receive help in the second round of the Initiative. Assistance will be in the form of equity loans, interest free loans and shared ownership. The tables set out the numbers of teachers who will receive assistance, by LEA, for each of the two rounds of the Initiative.
	
		Round one—Starter Homes Initiative
		
			 Area/LEA  Teachers 
		
		
			 London (covering all London boroughs 1,588 
			 Berkshire 132 
			 Buckinghamshire 85 
			 Oxfordshire 87 
			 Hampshire 200 
			 Kent 142 
			 East Sussex 129 
			 Surrey 157 
			 Cambridgeshire 50 
			 Hertfordshire 68 
			 Bedford 19 
			 Essex 98 
			 Covers Bournemouth, Bristol, South Gloucestershire, Cheltenham, Christchurch, Swindon 60 
			  
			 Total 2,815 
		
	
	
		Round two—Starter Homes Initiative
		
			 Area/LEA  Teachers 
		
		
			 Dorset 18 
			 Milton Keynes 10 
			 Southampton 10 
			 Warwickshire 25 
			 Wiltshire 21 
			 Bedfordshire 21 
			 Buckinghamshire 25 
			 Cambridgshire 26 
			 East Sussex 22 
			 Essex 66 
			 Hertfordshire 57 
			 Kent 70 
			 Oxfordshire 28 
			 South Gloucestershire/City of Bristol 13 
			 Surrey 46 
			 Swindon 10 
			 Hampshire 59 
			 Medway 30 
			 Portsmouth 17 
			 Thurrock 15 
			 Luton 10 
			 Bath and North East Somerset 10 
			 North Somerset 10 
			 Bracknell Forest 10 
			 Brighton and Hove 10 
			 Isles of Scilly 1 
			 Poole 10 
			 Reading 10 
			 Slough 10 
			 West Berkshire 10 
			 Windsor and Maidenhead 10 
			 Wokingham 10 
			  
			 Total 700

Departmental Staff

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many overseas visits have been undertaken by parliamentary private secretaries in her Department at departmental expense in each of the last four years; and at what cost to public funds.

Ivan Lewis: Parliamentary Private Secretaries supporting Ministers in this Department have travelled overseas on Government business on two occasions; both visits took place in 1998, at a total cost of £940. All travel complied with the requirements of the Ministerial Code.

Civil Servants

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many new entrants to the Civil Service were employed in her Department in each of the last five years; and how many in each year were aged 50 and over.

Ivan Lewis: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister, Official Report, 25 February 2002, column 879W.

Teachers' Pay

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which establishments qualify for the Teachers' Pay Initiative in (a) South Tyneside and (b) Tyne and Wear

Margaret Hodge: All further education sector colleges in South Tyneside and Tyne and Wear are eligible for support under the Teaching Pay Initiative (TPI). The following six colleges have submitted "declarations of intent" for TPI and are being paid by the Learning and Skills Council: City of Sunderland College; Gateshead College; Newcastle College; North Tyneside College; South Tyneside College; and Tynemouth College.

Teachers' Pay

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what funding is available for the higher pay spine;
	(2)  if she will make a statement on the future funding of the Leadership Group.

Stephen Timms: Schools fund the bulk of teachers' pay from their delegated budget provided by their local education authority using resources distributed through Education Standard Spending Assessments. The total of Education SSAs will rise to £23.8 billion in 2002–03—an increase of 5.7 per cent. in cash terms. On top of this, schools will continue to receive special grant to meet the extra cost of teachers who have moved to the first point of the upper pay scale by crossing the threshold. They will also receive a new special grant worth £250 million over the next two years to help meet the cost of performance points they award to classroom teachers—including those on the upper pay scale—and to members of the leadership group.

Excluded Pupils

Phil Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans she has to ensure that all excluded pupils enter full-time education from September.

Ivan Lewis: holding answer 13 February 2002
	In 1999 the Government made a commitment that all LEAs would offer full-time education to pupils excluded for 15 days or more by September 2002. All LEAs have reported making progress against meeting this commitment. This year LEAs received more than £36 million for the Social Inclusion: Pupil Support grant to help with the provision of full-time education for excluded children compared to some £26 million last year. In addition, LEAs can transfer funding from schools when a permanent exclusion occurs in order to support the reintegration of the excluded child into a new school or to pay for education outside of school. We are supporting LEAs in meeting the commitment, visiting some LEAs to identify whether there are any barriers to achieving the commitment and what further support we might offer them; and involving education advisers and HMIs in this programme of support. We shall publish a good practice guide for all LEAs by the end of February.

Industrial Action

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many days have been lost owing to industrial action by staff in her Department, agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each of the last four years.

Ivan Lewis: No days have been lost owing to industrial action by staff in the Department for Education and Skills (DfES), or its predecessor the Department for Education and Employment (DfEE), or its non- departmental public bodies over the last four years.

Pay Scales

Richard Ottaway: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will make a statement on the differential between pay scales in further and secondary education in the last three years for which records are available.

Margaret Hodge: The main scale pay ranges for teachers in secondary education over the last three years are as follows: 1999 (£14,658 to £23,193); 2000 (£15,141 to £23,843); 2001 (£16,038 to £24,843). The recommended salaries for main scale lecturers in general further education colleges over the two years for which we hold figures are: 2000 (£13,745 to £24,907); 2001 (£14,254 to £25,289). Although the scales are broadly comparable, as independent corporations colleges have their own pay policies and the way in which the recommended pay scales are used will vary from college to college.

Ministerial Boxes

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills by what means ministerial boxes are conveyed from private offices in her Department to (a) herself and (b) her Ministers; how frequently and at what expense private courier firms are employed for such a task; and which courier firms have been used for such duties.

Ivan Lewis: Ministerial boxes originating from this Department are transported to Ministers' homes either by Government car or by a service provided by the Royal Mail.

Sixth Form Funding

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what formula is used by the Learning and Skills Council to fund (a) school sixth forms and (b) sixth form colleges.

Margaret Hodge: The formula for funding school sixth forms and further education sixth form colleges is the responsibility of the Learning and Skills Council. I have therefore asked John Harwood, the council's chief executive, to write to the right hon. Gentleman providing the information requested and to place a copy of his reply in the Library.

City of London Corporation (Events)

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will list the functions, engagements and events which Ministers, her officials and advisers have attended which have been sponsored, funded, promoted by her Department and hosted by the City of London Corporation since 1997.

Ivan Lewis: This information could be supplied only at disproportionate cost. All attendance by Ministers and civil servants at events, engagements and functions is undertaken in line with the guidance and principles set out in the Ministerial Code and departmental staff handbooks.

Tuition Fees

Gerry Steinberg: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what percentage of tuition fees collected since 1997 has been paid directly to universities;
	(2)  what the total amount is of tuition fees collected since they were introduced;
	(3)  what the total amount is of tuition fees that have been used to fund higher education since the introduction of tuition fees; and by what percentage funding for higher education would be received if the total amount of tuition fees collected had been used to fund extra higher education;
	(4)  what the increase in university funding has been since tuition fees were introduced.

Margaret Hodge: All tuition fees, whether paid by students or the taxpayer, are paid directly to higher education institutions. Introducing contributions to tuition fees in 1998 has helped the Government to fund the further expansion of the sector while maintaining and increasing the unit of funding per full-time equivalent student from 2001–02. The estimated total amount of private contributions to tuition fees collected by English institutions from 1998–99 to 2001–02 is £963 million. Over the same period, the total of publicly planned expenditure for higher education institutions was over £21 billion. The increase in publicly planned funding from this Department between 1998–99 and 2001–02 was £1,124 million, an increase of 12 per cent. in real terms. Planned public expenditure for the higher education sector in England in the six years to 2003–04 is set to grow by £1.7 billion. This represents a cash increase of 37 per cent. and a real terms increase of 18 per cent.

Part-time Employment (Universities)

Gerry Steinberg: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many part-time employees were recruited in UK universities in each year from 1999 to 2001; and how many non-EU students were recruited (a) as part-time employees and (b) for more than 100 hours of employment in a year in UK universities in each year from 1999 to 2001.

Margaret Hodge: The available information for the three most recent years, covering part-time academic staff, is shown in the table. Details of the actual number of hours worked is not held centrally.
	
		Part-time academic staff(11) recruited by HE institutions in the UK
		
			  Academic year  
			   1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 
		
		
			 Number of part-time staff recruited(12) 2,940 3,260 3,420 
			 of which:
			 Those from outside the EU 100 140 160 
		
	
	(11) Covers staff who are wholly financed by the institution, and include those who whose primary employment function, according to their contract, is teaching, research, or teaching/research. Only covers part-time staff whose total work commitment exceeds 25 per cent. of a full-time equivalent.
	(12) Including staff recruited from other HE institutions.
	Source:
	Higher Education Statistics Agency's Staff Record. Numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10.

Individual Learning Accounts

Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what recent representations she has received from the Association of Colleges concerning losses sustained in the further education sector following closure of the ILA scheme; and what response her Department has made.

John Healey: holding answer 11 February 2002
	I received correspondence dated 25 January 2002 from David Gibson, Chief Executive of the Association of Colleges, about the closure of Individual Learning Accounts. I was able to send a full reply on 8 February 2002.

Individual Learning Accounts

Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what advice she received from the Further Education Funding Council in May 2000 concerning the setting up of the individual learning accounts scheme; and if she will make a statement.

John Healey: holding answer 11 February 2002
	Further Education Funding Council staff discussed a number of aspects of the design of the ILA programme at liaison meetings with the Department. These included issues about the quality assurance and audit arrangements for providers. In the final design of the ILA programme, there were light touch quality assurance arrangements so that the scheme could be as simple and non-bureaucratic as possible. Successor arrangements for ILAs will be based on stronger quality assurance arrangements for providers.

Individual Learning Accounts

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many learning providers in the individual learning account scheme fall into each decile measured by the amount owed to them by her Department on 31 January; what was the range of each decile; and what was the total owed.

John Healey: The figures for amounts owed on 31 January 2002 include amounts withheld from providers already suspended prior to the closure of the programme on 23 November and amounts withheld pending validation checks on claims. The total amount withheld is £14,723,997.
	
		Amounts owed to providers on 31 January 2002
		
			  Decile Range start (£) Range end (£) Number of registered providers 
		
		
			 1 1 100,826 113 
			 2 100,826 201,651 22 
			 3 201,651 302,477 9 
			 4 302,477 403,303 6 
			 5 403,303 504,128 0 
			 6 504,128 604,954 2 
			 7 604,954 705,780 0 
			 8 705,780 806,606 1 
			 9 806,606 907,431 0 
			 10 907,431 1,008,257 1 
			
			 Total   154

Working Conditions and Practices

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many people are employed in her Department on a job share contract; and what percentage of vacant positions was advertised on this basis in the last 12 months.

Ivan Lewis: The Department does not specifically employ staff on job share contracts; however, 12 per cent. of staff are employed under a range of part-time working patterns.
	Job sharing is only one of a number of alternative working patterns that staff can take up. The Department promotes and supports the use of a range of flexible working patterns to enable staff to balance home and work responsibilities; other examples, besides part-time working, include condensed hours and home working.
	Advertised vacancies in the Department are open to all staff, irrespective of their working arrangements or pattern of work.

School Review (Harrow)

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment she has made of the system of school review used by Harrow local education authority; and if she will make a statement.

Stephen Timms: Assessments of the way in which local education authorities perform their functions are made by Ofsted and the Audit Commission during inspections of those authorities. Harrow local education authority was inspected in September 2001 and the inspection report is available from Ofted's website at: www.ofsted.gov.uk.

Entertainment Costs

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will list for 1997–98 and for each subsequent financial year, including the current year to date, the amount spent by (a) her Department, (b) its agencies and (c) its non-departmental public bodies on (i) food and (ii) alcohol, indicating how much was spent on guests, and how much in respect of (A) Ministers and (B) staff, broken down to show how much was provided directly by her Department and how much reclaimed.

Ivan Lewis: This information could be supplied only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Events

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will list the (a) conferences, (b) seminars, (c) workshops, (d) exhibitions and (e) press conferences which have been sponsored by her Department and which took place on non-departmental premises in each of the last four years giving the title, purpose, date and cost of each.

Ivan Lewis: We organise a large number of events for different target audiences and purposes each year, ranging from small-scale workshops to introduce practitioners to new procedures or initiatives, to larger- scale events to promote policy initiatives or present the bigger picture of the Department's activities to external partners.
	Examples of these range from the Early Years Development and Childcare Partnership roadshows—a series of local seminars organised annually in the autumn for LEAs and child care providers to share best practice—to the conferences held with LEAs and teachers in autumn 2001 on the proposals set out in the White Paper "Schools: achieving success".
	To give details of every event held over the last four years would be possible only at disproportionate cost.

Data Protection Act

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many requests the Department has received under the Data Protection Act 1988 for (a) electronically held information and (b) paper documentation.

Ivan Lewis: The Department has received 31 requests for information under the Data Protection Act 1998.
	Requests for information to the Department for Education and Skills have usually asked for all information held on the individual, irrespective of medium.

Data Protection Act

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many responses the Department has completed to requests for information made under the Data Protection Act 1998 for (a) electronically held information and (b) paper documentation.

Ivan Lewis: The Department has completed 26 responses to requests for information under the Data Protection Act 1998.
	Requests for information usually ask for all information held on the individual, irrespective of medium.

Playing Fields

Graham Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will list applications made to her Department in the last three years for consent to allow development on school playing fields giving in each case (a) the outcome of the application, (b) what steps were taken to ascertain whether adequate sports facilities would remain if permission were granted and (c) where consent was given, what assurances were secured as to how proceeds of sale would be used.

Stephen Timms: Although the Department does not collect information in the form requested, the following table lists applications to dispose of areas equal to, or larger than, a sports pitch, together with their outcome.
	Before October 1998, there was nothing to prevent a local authority selling a school playing field if it wanted to. Section 77 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 was introduced in October 1998 to stop the indiscriminate sale of school playing fields. Local authorities and governing bodies of all maintained schools are now required to obtain the Secretary of State's consent before disposing of playing fields or any part of a playing field. Applications to dispose, or change the use, of school playing fields are assessed against the following criteria:
	(a) schools' needs: that playing field provision and curriculum requirements at the school making the disposal, and at other schools in the local area, will be met;
	(b) community needs: that community use of a school's playing fields is taken into account, with alternative facilities made available if necessary;
	(c) finance: that any sale proceeds are re-invested to provide new or improved sports facilities at schools, or are used to help to raise standards by providing better educational facilities.
	Only those applications that meet the criteria are approved. Since July 2001, all applications have been scrutinised by the independent School Playing Fields Advisory Panel to make sure that they conform to the published criteria. The Panel comprises representatives from the National Playing Fields Association, the Central Council of Physical Recreation, the education organisation Learning through Landscapes, the National Association of Head Teachers and the Local Government Association.
	
		Applications to dispose of school sports pitches which have been approved by the Secretary of State
		
			 Local education authority  School Date applied 
		
		
			 Barnet Ashmole School 15 December 1998 
			 Bedfordshire Silver Jubilee Middle School 30 April 1999 
			 Bedfordshire Ashton St. Peter VA School 29 September 2000 
			 Birmingham Broadway School 11 June 2001 
			 Blackpool Collegiate High School 13 December 1999 
			 Bolton St. James's CofE School 24 July 1998 
			 Bristol Monks Park Secondary School 28 October 1998 
			 Buckinghamshire Bellfield First and Middle Schools 22 February 1999 
			 Buckinghamshire Terriers County First School 10 May 1999 
			 Buckinghamshire Downley Middle School 12 January 2000 
			 Buckinghamshire Heights First School 12 January 2000 
			 Calderdale Brooksbank School 1 July 1998 
			 Cheshire St. James CofE Junior School 30 November 1998 
			 Cheshire Colshaw CP School 30 June 1999 
			 Cheshire Westlands High School 17 November 1999 
			 Cheshire Manor Park Infant School 27 November 2000 
			 Cheshire Brookside County Infant School 5 February 2001 
			 Croydon Haling Manor High School 4 January 1999 
			 Derbyshire Noel Baker Community School 2 November 1998 
			 Derbyshire Western Mere School 2 February 1999 
			 Derbyshire Pingle School 26 July 2000 
			 Devon Highweek Primary School 17 August 1999 
			 Dorset Fosters School 7 December 1998 
			 Dudley Colley Lane Primary School 11 October 2001 
			 Dudley Summerhill Secondary School 11 October 2001 
			 Durham The Avenue Comprehensive School 19 May 1999 
			 Durham Westwood Primary School 31 July 2000 
			 Essex The Stanway School 17 November 1998 
			 Essex Moulsham High School 18 January 1999 
			 Essex Oakview Special School 10 April 2000 
			 Essex Tabor High School 29 January 2001 
			 Gloucestershire Churchdown School 3 December 1997 
			 Gloucestershire The Catholic School of St. Gregory the Great 26 July 1999 
			 Gloucestershire Oxstalls Community School 25 November 1999 
			 Halton Ashley Special School 6 November 1998 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham Gibbs Green Special School 8 March 1999 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham Burlington Danes School 16 March 1999 
			 Havering Frances Bardsley School for Girls 13 August 1999 
			 Kent St. Thomas' Special School 12 May 1999 
			 Kent St. Simon Stock School 13 December 1999 
			 Kent Allhallows Primary School 12 July 2001 
			 Knowsley Sylvester School 12 August 1999 
			 Lancashire St. Richards RC High School 15 December 1998 
			 Lancashire St. Thomas Acquinas RC High School 5 February 1999 
			 Lancashire Baines High School 15 November 2000 
			 Leeds Lawnswood School 21 November 2000 
			 Leeds Oakwood Primary School 21 November 2000 
			 Leeds Roundhay School 21 November 2000 
			 Leeds Wetherby High School 19 September 2001 
			 Liverpool Childwall Comprehensive School 9 April 2001 
			 Milton Keynes Denbigh School 16 November 1998 
			 Milton Keynes Castles First School 6 August 1999 
			 Norfolk Redgate Middle School 12 April 2000 
			 North-East Lincs Hereford Technology College 13 November 2000 
			 North Tyneside St. Mary's Roman Catholic School 22 December 1998 
			 North Yorkshire Settle CE Primary School 20 November 1998 
			 Northamptonshire John Lea Secondary School 14 August 2000 
			 Northumberland St. Benet Biscop RC Aided High School 5 February 1999 
			 Northumberland Gallowhill Hall Special School 18 February 2000 
			 Nottinghamshire Manor Comprehensive School 14 April 2000 
			 Nottinghamshire Lincoln Street Infant School 14 July 2000 
			 Oldham Kaskenmoor Secondary School 29 October 1999 
			 Oxfordshire Wallingford School 16 June 2000 
			 Peterborough The King's School 8 May 1998 
			 Peterborough Deacons School 28 July 1998 
			 Peterborough The King's School 27 September 2000 
			 Rochdale Spring Hill High School 7 May 1999 
			 Rochdale Middleton Technology School 28 March 2001 
			 Sefton Litherland Moss County Primary School 22 March 1999 
			 Shropshire Lower Grove School 2 February 2001 
			 Somerset King Arthur's Comprehensive School 24 March 1999 
			 Somerset Ladymead Comprehensive School 6 April 1999 
			 Staffordshire Sir Graham Balfour High School 25 June 1999 
			 Surrey Rosebery School 6 January 1998 
			 Surrey Okewood District CE School 30 November 1998 
			 Surrey Merland Rise CP School 8 January 1999 
			 Surrey Banstead County Junior School and St. Anne's RC Primary School 27 May 1999 
			 Surrey Park Mead Junior School 8 March 2000 
			 Surrey Boxgrove Primary School 13 April 2000 
			 Tameside Egerton Park High School 17 January 2000 
			 Telford and Wrekin Blessed Robert Johnson School 26 March 1999 
			 Wakefield South Elmsall Middle School 10 December 1998 
			 Wakefield Kinsley First School 13 January 1999 
			 Wakefield Kinsley First School 30 July 1999 
			 Walsall Beacon School 18 December 1998 
			 Walsall St. Thomas More Catholic Comprehensive School 18 April 2001 
			 Warwickshire Attleborough First School 11 December 1998 
			 Warwickshire Exhall First School 21 July 1999 
			 Warwickshire Binley Woods First School 3 August 1999 
			 Warwickshire Stratford-upon-Avon High School 14 August 2000 
			 Warwickshire Marie Corelli School 21 August 2000 
			 West Sussex Hazelwick School 7 February 2000 
			 Wigan Hindley Borsdane Brook Special School 11 February 1999 
			 Wigan Rose Hill Special School 11 February 1999 
			 Wigan Tyldesley Highfield Special School 11 February 1999 
			 Wigan Orrell Holgate Primary School 4 December 2000 
			 Wiltshire Castle Combe Primary School 7 August 2000 
			 Wolverhampton St. Peters Collegiate School 25 November 1998 
			 Wolverhampton Aldersley High School 4 December 1998 
			 Worcestershire Callowbrook First School 6 November 2000 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. 'Sports pitch' means areas of open grassed land which are equal to, or larger than, the Football Association's recommended area for games played by under-10s, that is 2,000m
	(13) and which have a configuration making them suitable for sports pitches (whether they are so laid out or not).
	2. The table excludes applications withdrawn by the applicant and applications where schools would retain the same, or a better, level of access to the same sports pitch or to an equivalent sports pitch.
	3. The table includes applications from grant-maintained schools, where the application was made under section 231 of the Education Act 1996 but the decision was made in accordance with the draft criteria and then the criteria published in Circular No. 3/99, "The Protection of School Playing Fields". It also includes applications in respect of foundation and voluntary schools considered under Schedule 22 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 since 1 September 1999.

Playing Fields

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many (a) primary schools, (b) secondary schools, (c) colleges of further education and (d) local authorities have (i) playing fields, (ii) sports pitches, (iii) swimming pools and (iv) athletic tracks; and if she will provide the figures for each year since 1992.

John Healey: As part of the data collected for local education authorities asset management plans, the Department has information on the numbers of playing fields, team game playing fields and swimming pools at primary and secondary schools. The team game playing field data do not distinguish between sports pitches, athletic tracks, or other outdoor team game areas. The Department is currently validating the data with a view to publishing the analysis later this year.
	The data referred to above were collected mainly in 2000. The Department does not hold data for previous or subsequent years.
	The Department does not hold the requested information for colleges of further education or for local authorities.

Research Assessment

Alan Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what her policy is in respect of the latest research assessment exercise.

Margaret Hodge: The Department's policy is to strengthen research excellence and support world-class research. The Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) is a mechanism devised by the Higher Education Funding Council for England and the other UK funding bodies to establish the relative quality of research in higher education institutions and to provide a mechanism to allocate the funding available. The RAE does not of itself lead to an increase in resources. Nevertheless, in the light of the significant increase in the quality of research in the 2001 RAE, my Department has made available an extra £30 million in 2002–03 to allow the Higher Education Funding Council for England better to support high quality research in higher education.

University, East Lancashire

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will establish a university in East Lancashire; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: The Secretary of State has no such plans. This would initially be a matter for the interested bodies in the region to consider with the Higher Education Funding Council for England.

Arthur Andersen

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what contracts her Department has had since 1997 with (a) Arthur Andersen and (b) Accenture for (i) accountancy, (ii) audit and (iii) consultancy work; and what staff have been seconded (A) to her Department from and (B) from her Department to these firms.

Ivan Lewis: Arthur Andersen was part of a consortium (including Birmingham City Council and APS Keele) contracted to the Department to provide consultancy services to failing local education authorities following critical Ofsted inspections. The contract was agreed in May 1999; Arthur Andersen withdrew from the consortium in January 2001. Apart from that, the Department has had no contracts with Arthur Andersen or Accenture for the services specified, nor have any staff been seconded to or from my Department to these firms during the period in question.

University Staff

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what estimate she has made of the number of additional university staff required to meet the target of increasing the proportion of 18 to 30-year-olds who take higher education courses to 50 per cent. by 2010.

Margaret Hodge: There will need to be a significant increase in the number of university staff. The extra staff needed in each year will depend upon: the number of students each year as we progress to the target; the number of students to each member of staff; and staff turnover. The number of students each year will be affected by the following factors: the size and age distribution of the population; the proportion of the population attaining the qualifications necessary for higher education; and the proportion of those qualified who choose to enter high education. This will in part depend on the funding levels that are subject to discussion in the spending review. The outcome of the review will be announced in the summer of 2002.

MMR Vaccine

Eleanor Laing: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what recent guidance her Department has given to nursery schools and other providers of early years education and child care about accepting children who (a) have and (b) have not had the MMR vaccine.

Margaret Hodge: The MMR vaccine is the safest and most effective way to protect children against measles, mumps and rubella. Though strongly recommended, the MMR is not compulsory and we have issued guidance to local Early Years Development and Childcare Partnerships to say that child care and nursery education providers should not exclude a child who has not had the vaccination.

Level 3 Qualifications

David Rendel: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many people undertook level 3 qualifications in 2000–01 who already had level 4 or 5 qualifications; and what the average cost per student of these level 3 courses was in (i) tuition costs and (ii) maintenance support; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: Information from the Labour Force Survey suggests that approximately 60,000 1 people undertook level 3 qualifications in 2000–01 who already held a level 4 or 5 qualification. Average costs per student for these courses are not available.
	1 The 95 per cent. Confidence Interval for the LFS estimate of 60,000 is 60,000 ±9,000.

Skills Shortages

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment she has made of the level of skill shortages in (a) the building industry and (b) the road haulage industry.

John Healey: Employers and their representative bodies have the lead responsibility for identifying and tackling skill needs in their sector. The Department does however monitor broad trends and supports National Training Organisations, Industry Training Boards and the new Sector Skills Councils in carrying out this work. A number of recent assessments have been made.
	The Employers Skill Survey 2001 covers 27,000 employers, is commissioned by the Department and carried out by independent researchers. This work reported on skills shortages and skills needs across all sectors of the economy, including the two sectors in question. This shows that 7 per cent. of employers in the construction industry, and 6 per cent. in the Other Land Transport 1 industry reported skill shortage vacancies, compared to 4 per cent. of employers overall.
	Each sector is also assessed in a series of Skills Dialogues, reports resulting from collaboration between National Training Organisations, Government, funding agencies and education and training bodies to discuss skill needs and skill gaps in the major industrial, business and service sectors. Two relevant assessments from this series are:
	An Assessment of Skill Needs in Construction and Related Industries (2001)
	An Assessment of Skill Needs in Transport (2001).
	Copies of all three reports are available in the House of Commons Library.
	1 Other Land Transport includes road passenger transport as well as freight transport by road as the data are not disaggregated to the level of road haulage.

Skills Shortages

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps she is taking to address the shortage of skilled workers in (a) the building industry and (b) the road haulage industry.

John Healey: Arrangements for training in these industries are a matter for the employers, as in any other industry. A network of National Training Organisations (NTOs), set up by employers and formally recognised by the Government, provides strategic leadership and practical guidance about the learning, skills and qualification needs for a defined sector. The Construction Industry Training Board is the NTO for the building and civil engineering sector and the Road Haulage and Distribution Training Council covers the road haulage industry.
	The Government recently announced plans to build a stronger sector network that will engage employers more fully in the planning and delivery of learning and skills. Sector Skills Councils are being set up which build on the achievements secured by NTOs.
	The Government have introduced a clear vocational pathway from key stage 3 through Modern Apprenticeships, Foundation Degrees and Graduate Apprenticeships to provide high-level vocational skills across sectors. In addition, it is the Government's intention that 50 per cent. of Further Education Colleges will become Centres of Vocational Excellence. Our commitment was strengthened through our proposals to provide more high-quality, rigorous vocational qualifications at GCSE level as set out in the consultation document "14–19 extending opportunities, raising standards".
	Additionally, DfES is supporting three projects totalling £5 million funded by the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions as part of the £100 million Road Haulage Modernisation Fund. These are a feasibility study into Transferable Loans Scheme, the Expansion of Young Drivers Scheme and the Demonstration Modern Apprenticeship (MA) Based Project in Road Haulage.

Correspondence

James Cran: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when a substantive reply will be given to Mrs. F. Cuthbert's letter of 6 November 2000, concerning PC repairs and maintenance.

John Healey: I replied to the hon. Member's letter of 19 November 2001 on the 14 February 2002.

Sector Skills Development Agency

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when she expects to appoint a chief executive and chairman of the Sector Skills Development Agency.

John Healey: On 14 February I announced the appointment of Margaret Salmon as chair of the Sector Skills Development Agency. Margaret Salmon is currently a non-executive director with Kingfisher plc and a director of the University for Industry. She is a former chief executive officer of BBC Resources and group personnel director, the Burton Group. Her appointment takes effect from 14 February.
	We shall announce shortly the appointment of the chief executive of the agency.

SSA Estimates

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will estimate the size of SSA and expenditure on relevant functions in Newcastle upon Tyne in 2001–02 which is implied by the transfers of SSA expenditure to the Learning and Skills Council and the National Care Standards Commission for 2002–03.

Stephen Timms: The Learning and Skills Council allocation for Newcastle upon Tyne for 2002–03 is £9.137 million, which is equivalent to £8.914 million of the authority's 2001–02 Education SSA. Figures for expenditure on post-16 education by the authority for 2001–02 are not available. The transfer of funding for the National Care Standards Commission is the responsibility of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health.

SSA Estimates

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will estimate for each local education authority the SSA per student provided for 11 to 15-year-old pupils in real terms.

Stephen Timms: The information requested is in the following table.
	
		SSA per secondary pupil aged 11 to 15 for 2002–03
		
			  Local education authority £ 
		
		
			 201 City of London 7,606 
			 202 Camden 4,766 
			 203 Greenwich 4,650 
			 204 Hackney 5,381 
			 205 Hammersmith 4,857 
			 206 Islington 5,176 
			 207 Kensington and Chelsea 4,813 
			 208 Lambeth 5,623 
			 209 Lewisham 4,912 
			 210 Southwark 5,030 
			 211 Tower Hamlets 5,320 
			 212 Wandsworth 4,458 
			 213 Westminster 4,507 
			 301 Barking 4,050 
			 302 Barnet 3,757 
			 303 Bexley 3,589 
			 304 Brent 4,399 
			 305 Bromley 3,518 
			 306 Croydon 3,945 
			 307 Ealing 4,185 
			 308 Enfield 3,936 
			 309 Haringey 4,587 
			 310 Harrow 3,823 
			 311 Havering 3,562 
			 312 Hillingdon 3,741 
			 313 Hounslow 3,946 
			 314 Kingston on Thames 3,554 
			 315 Merton 3,837 
			 316 Newham 4,520 
			 317 Redbridge 3,801 
			 318 Richmond on Thames 3,475 
			 319 Sutton 3,534 
			 320 Waltham Forest 4,211 
			 330 Birmingham 3,721 
			 331 Coventry 3,457 
			 332 Dudley 3,182 
			 333 Sandwell 3,531 
			 334 Solihull 3,119 
			 335 Walsall 3,334 
			 336 Wolverhampton 3,533 
			 340 Knowsley 3,924 
			 341 Liverpool 3,816 
			 342 St. Helens 3,357 
			 343 Sefton 3,304 
			 344 Wirral 3,454 
			 350 Bolton 3,316 
			 351 Bury 3,222 
			 352 Manchester 4,015 
			 353 Oldham 3,424 
			 354 Rochdale 3,472 
			 355 Salford 3,541 
			 356 Stockport 3,163 
			 357 Tameside 3,310 
			 358 Trafford 3,232 
			 359 Wigan 3,185 
			 370 Barnsley 3,371 
			 371 Doncaster 3,441 
			 372 Rotherham 3,274 
			 373 Sheffield 3,392 
			 380 Bradford 3,574 
			 381 Calderdale 3,351 
			 382 Kirklees 3,389 
			 383 Leeds 3,346 
			 384 Wakefield 3,249 
			 390 Gateshead 3,405 
			 391 Newcastle upon Tyne 3,606 
			 392 North Tyneside 3,317 
			 393 South Tyneside 3,482 
			 394 Sunderland 3,414 
			 420 Isles of Scilly 6,164 
			 800 Bath and NE Somerset 3,064 
			 801 City of Bristol 3,465 
			 802 North Somerset 3,168 
			 803 South Gloucestershire 3,087 
			 805 Hartlepool 3,437 
			 806 Middlesbrough 3,722 
			 807 Redcar and Cleveland 3,416 
			 808 Stockton-on-Tees 3,375 
			 810 Kingston-upon-Hull 3,563 
			 811 East Riding of Yorkshire 3,197 
			 812 North East Lincolnshire 3,424 
			 813 North Lincolnshire 3,352 
			 815 North Yorkshire 3,244 
			 816 York 3,191 
			 820 Bedfordshire 3,408 
			 821 Luton 3,708 
			 825 Buckinghamshire 3,411 
			 826 Milton Keynes 3,523 
			 830 Derbyshire 3,196 
			 831 Derby City 3,429 
			 835 Dorset 3,179 
			 836 Poole 3,133 
			 837 Bournemouth 3,274 
			 840 Durham 3,378 
			 841 Darlington 3,338 
			 845 East Sussex 3,497 
			 846 Brighton and Hove 3,596 
			 850 Hampshire 3,321 
			 851 Portsmouth 3,532 
			 852 Southampton 3,650 
			 855 Leicestershire 3,094 
			 856 Leicester City 3,649 
			 857 Rutland 3,039 
			 860 Staffordshire 3,144 
			 861 Stoke 3,407 
			 865 Wiltshire 3,219 
			 866 Swindon 3,200 
			 867 Bracknell Forest 3,498 
			 868 Windsor and Maidenhead 3,431 
			 869 West Berkshire 3,280 
			 870 Reading 3,642 
			 871 Slough 4,147 
			 872 Wokingham 3,177 
			 873 Cambridgeshire 3,225 
			 874 Peterborough 3,480 
			 875 Cheshire 3,148 
			 876 Halton 3,546 
			 877 Warrington 3,147 
			 878 Devon 3,289 
			 879 Plymouth 3,314 
			 880 Torbay 3,316 
			 881 Essex 3,464 
			 882 Southend 3,520 
			 883 Thurrock 3,681 
			 884 Herefordshire 3,313 
			 885 Worcestershire 3,157 
			 886 Kent 3,470 
			 887 Medway 3,440 
			 888 Lancashire 3,319 
			 889 Blackburn 3,574 
			 890 Blackpool 3,394 
			 891 Nottinghamshire 3,219 
			 892 Nottingham City 3,744 
			 893 Shropshire 3,227 
			 894 Telford and Wrekin 3,363 
			 908 Cornwall 3,335 
			 909 Cumbria 3,299 
			 916 Gloucestershire 3,186 
			 919 Hertfordshire 3,503 
			 921 Isle of Wight 3,600 
			 925 Lincolnshire 3,310 
			 926 Norfolk 3,325 
			 928 Northamptonshire 3,232 
			 929 Northumberland 3,288 
			 931 Oxfordshire 3,399 
			 933 Somerset 3,245 
			 935 Suffolk 3,221 
			 936 Surrey 3,466 
			 937 Warwickshire 3,172 
			 938 West Sussex 3,365 
		
	
	Note:
	All figures rounded to the nearest £

Advanced Skills Teachers

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many advanced skills teachers there are.

Stephen Timms: There are 1,234 Advanced Skills Teachers. This figure is based on the annual 618g survey (January 2001) and all those successfully assessed since then up to 13 February 2002.

Advanced Skills Teachers

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what funding is being made available to enable schools to recruit advanced skills teachers.

Stephen Timms: Funding for Advanced Skills Teacher (AST) posts is available to maintained schools through the Standards Fund. In the current financial year, £40,391,000 is available to enable schools to recruit ASTs, and in 2002–03 this figure will rise to £56,658,850. This total Standards Fund AST grant includes contributions from local education authorities (LEAs) as well as DfES.
	Schools are able to claim the additional cost of placing an AST at an appropriate point on the AST pay spine and a fixed amount towards the cost of outreach work. In addition, the grant includes funding for each LEA to use for the co-ordination of AST outreach work and to support and develop its cadre of ASTs.
	While specific allocations for ASTs have been made available to LEAs, the Standards Fund does allow some virement between grants.

Primary Schools

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many primary schools had over 600 pupils in 2000.

Stephen Timms: holding answer 14 February 2002
	In January 2000 there were 132 maintained primary schools in England with over 600 full-time pupils.

Skills Policies

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will make a statement on her policies to improve the UK's skills base.

John Healey: holding answer 14 February 2002
	My Department has a wide range of policies designed to improve the UK's skills base. There are four key elements to our strategy for achieving a high skills, high value added economy. They are to:
	strengthen the links between learning and employment;
	create excellence in vocational learning;
	work with employers to boost skills and productivity;
	promote the adult basic skills strategy.
	We will strengthen the links between what people learn and the jobs they will have in future. We will extend the Connexions Service to all parts of England by 2003, and we are investing £5.5 billion in the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) budget to encourage greater participation and attainment in learning. We are addressing the under- representation of certain groups in Higher Education (HE) and have developed initiatives to widen participation and equip the country with the high level skills that will be needed in the 21st century. By 2010, I want to ensure that young people and adults in England have knowledge and productive skills that match the best in the world. We will use the new Sector Skills Councils (SSCs) to identify and anticipate sector skills needs, building an effective employer network to reduce skills gaps and to improve productivity and performance.
	The vocational ladder will offer young people wanting to follow programmes of vocational study a clear set of routes that will allow them to progress to further and higher study, as well as being relevant to work. We are putting in place a new generation of Modern Apprenticeships, forming part of a coherent vocational learning system from age 14 which meets the needs of the individual, is broader and more coherent than before, and offers greater opportunities for progression. We have introduced—and will be developing—Foundation Degrees, Graduate Apprenticeships and Centres of Vocational Excellence. The Green Paper "14–19: Extending Opportunities, Raising Standards" published 12 February 2002 sets out proposals designed to enable all pupils to fulfil their potential, and put an end to the waste of young talent in this country.
	We are working with employers to boost competitiveness and productivity by giving everyone the chance to develop their skills and realise their potential. We are promoting Investors in People and Learndirect, we are reviewing ICT qualifications and actively encouraging links between SSCs, the LSC and all those organisations who have a role in identifying and delivering the skills the UK needs.
	'Skills for Life', the national strategy for improving adult literacy and numeracy, was launched on 1 March 2001. By 2004, I aim to have reduced by at least 750,000 the number of adults who have difficulties with literacy or numeracy. My policies are designed to increase demand for basic skills courses and reduce barriers to learning so that those needing to improve their skills feel empowered to take up learning and are helped to succeed.

Health and Safety (Computers)

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many employees in her Department who regularly use computers have taken up the provision of a free eye test; and how this service is advertised to (a) current and (b) new staff.

Ivan Lewis: The Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992, effective January 1993, require employers to provide and pay for, upon request from an employee, an eye and eyesight test. There is a requirement for further tests at regular intervals; the optometrist doing the first test can recommend when the next one should be. In addition, employers must pay the cost of special spectacles required where normal ones cannot be used.
	This facility is published on the Department's intranet and within its staff handbook.
	Information is not held centrally by my department on the number of employees who have taken up this provision and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Student Support

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the assessed contribution of parents to student fees and loans for 2002–03 implied by her proposals for new loan, grant and fees rates for 2002–03 is; and if she will set out the allowances against gross parental income she proposes to allow in 2002–03, including those for other dependent children, which determine the residual income for assessment of loans and fees.

Margaret Hodge: The residual income threshold above which parents are assessed for a contribution towards higher education student tuition fees and loans is raised annually in line with the latest forecast change in the Retail Prices Index. In 2002–03, parents will not be expected to contribute towards their children's fees or living costs support if their residual income is below £20,480. If their residual income is higher than £20,480, they will be expected to make a contribution towards their children's fees, rising with every pound of residual income. The maximum level of contribution towards tuition fees will be £1,100, which is broadly 25 per cent. of full tuition costs. If their residual income is higher than £30,502, parents will be expected to contribute towards their children's living costs support as well as their fees.
	The calculation of a parent's residual income in 2002–03 will allow the following specified sums to be deducted from the parent's gross income:
	In respect of any person other than the student who is dependent upon the parent: £2,360
	If the parent is also a student and is eligible for support: £950
	If the parent being assessed is incapacitated: £1,850
	If the parent has a cohabiting spouse or cohabiting partner who is incapacitated and is financially dependent upon the assessed parent: £1,850.

Schools (Portsmouth, South)

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children have been excluded from school in the constituency of Portsmouth, South in each year since 1997; and if she will make a statement.

Stephen Timms: The information requested is shown in the table:
	
		Permanent exclusions from primary, secondary and special schools in the Parliamentary constituency of Portsmouth, South
		
			  Academic year  
			  1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 
		
		
			 Portsmouth, South 
			 Number of permanent exclusions 48 26 19 9 
			 Percentage of school population(14) 0.40 0.22 0.15 0.07 
			  
			 England 
			 Number of permanent exclusions 12,668 12,298 10,438 8,323 
			 Percentage of school population(14) 0.17 0.16 0.14 0.11 
		
	
	(14) Number of permanent exclusions expressed as a percentage of the number (headcount) of full and part-time pupils of all ages (excluding dually registered pupils in special schools) in January each year.
	Source:
	Annual Schools Census

Schools (Portsmouth, South)

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children have been statemented as having special needs in the constituency of Portsmouth, South in each year since 1997; and if she will make a statement.

Stephen Timms: The information requested is shown in the table:
	
		Number of pupils with statements of special educational needs in schools in the constituency of Portsmouth, South(15) (position at January each year)
		
			  2001 2000 1999 1998 1997 
		
		
			 Pupils with statements of SEN 207 216 225 225 229 
			 Percentage of pupils with statements 1.66 1.74 1.83 1.87 1.93 
			 Total pupils 12,437 12,380 12,288 12,010 11,877 
		
	
	(15) Includes maintained primary and secondary schools and all maintained special schools
	Source:
	Annual Schools' Census

Sector Skills Council

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how long it will take to review and respond to the bids submitted for the Sector Skills Council.

John Healey: Employers wanting to form a Sector Skills Council (SSC) will submit an expression of interest to the Sector Skills Development Agency (SSDA). A reply will be made normally within six weeks. Expressions of interest accepted by the SSDA will lead to a development period of up to six months. At the end of this period a firm proposal to form an SSC will be submitted for consideration by the SSDA. There is no set time limit for the consideration of a proposal. If the proposal is acceptable the SSDA will make a positive recommendation to the Secretary of State for Education and Skills and the responsible Ministers in the devolved Administrations for the award of a SSC license.

Sector Skills Council

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills by when the Sector Skills Council bids have to be submitted.

John Healey: A deadline for the submission of an expression of interest to form a Sector Skills Council has not been set. It is important that a Council has influential employer leadership and broad support from its sector. The Sector Skills Development Agency therefore will consider an expression of interest from employers when they have committed to deliver action to drive up skills and productivity performance in a sector.

Higher Education

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many students are taking higher education courses in further education colleges (a) in total and (b) as a proportion of the overall total number of higher education students.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 30 January 2002
	The latest available figures for the 2000–01 academic year show that there were 218,200 students on HE courses in FE colleges, which represents 10.8 per cent. of the total number of HE students in the UK.

Higher Education

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many students entered (a) higher education and (b) further education in each of the last 20 years.

Margaret Hodge: Information on entrants to higher and further education courses in English institutions is not available for all the years requested. The available information on total student numbers is shown in the table.
	
		Number of students on higher and further education courses -- England
		
			 Academic year Higher education(16) Further education(17) 
		
		
			 1981–82 702,400 1,385,200 
			 1982–83 717,600 1,419,100 
			 1983–84 735,400 1,495,100 
			 1984–85 742,800 1,527,800 
			 1985–86 765,900 1,561,500 
			 1986–87 796,200 1,629,500 
			 1987–88 811,500 1,672,300 
			 1988–89 842,600 1,755,100 
			 1989–90 896,500 1,799,800 
			 1990–91 968,100 1,767,900 
			 1991–92 1,071,400 1,815,300 
			 1992–93 1,188,200 1,761,400 
			 1993–94 1,301,900 1,929,100 
			 1994–95 1,419,300 2,924,200 
			 1995–96 1,494,200 3,399,800 
			 1996–97 1,533,900 3,802,100 
			 1997–98 1,568,200 3,767,200 
			 1998–99 1,591,500 3,662,300 
			 1999–2000 1,610,000 3,608,100 
			 2000–01(18) 1,651,600 3,671,500 
		
	
	(16) Census count as at December 31 in years up to 1993–94, and as at December 1 in subsequent years. Includes HE students in FE colleges and the Open University.
	(17) Includes FE students in HE institutions in all years, and sixth form colleges as from 1993–94. Due to a change in data collection, the figures for FE sector colleges for the years 1994–95 to 2000–01 are not comparable with those for earlier years; as from 1994–95 the figures are based on a whole year count of students, whereas in previous years they a based on a snapshot count at November 1. As from 1994–95, includes funded and non-funded students.
	(18) Provisional. The figures for FE sector colleges are estimated.

Higher Education

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will state for each local education authority the size of special grant paid where funding changes as a result of the transfer of functions to learning and skills councils of responsibility for post-16 education occurred.

Stephen Timms: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Brentford and Isleworth (Ann Keen) on 30 January 2002, Official Report, column 412W.

Post-16 Education

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will express, in real terms, the SSA per student in respect of post-16 education in each local education authority in (a) 1999–2000, (b) 2000–01 and (c) 2001–02; and what her estimate is of SSA per student transferred to the Learning and Skills Council in 2002–03.

Stephen Timms: The Post-16 SSA cannot be expressed meaningfully as a per pupil amount because education for this group is not compulsory and a large part of the post-16 SSA is determined on the basis of population aged 11 to 15. For local education authorities without school sixth forms, and consequently with very small numbers of post-16 pupils, this would produce disproportionately high figures. Participation rates in schools post-16 can also vary significantly in authorities with sixth forms, which would make the figures for post-16 SSA per pupil vary significantly from year to year.

Amy Gehring

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether her Department received correspondence about Amy Gehring prior to the circumstances that led to the recent court case.

Stephen Timms: The Department received a letter on 20 November 2000 from Surrey police which contained factual information about allegations made against Miss Gehring, and stated that no further police action would be taken. This was the first notification the Department received of her case.
	Prior to this, on 1 November 2000, Timeplan had already allowed Miss Gehring to return to teaching in Surrey on a supply basis. On 9 November 2000 Surrey Child Protection Unit wrote to Timeplan warning them that the unit considered that Miss Gehring was a serious risk to children. Timeplan did not withdraw Miss Gehring from her teaching post and failed to inform the LEA, DfES or the schools of this warning.
	The allegations considered by the court are alleged to have taken place between 19 November 2000 and 31 December 2000.

SOLICITOR-GENERAL

Restricted Videos (Mail Order)

Edward Leigh: To ask the Solicitor-General what action she plans to take to combat the breach of the provisions of the Video Recordings Act 1984 by those selling Restricted 18 videos via mail order advertisements.

Harriet Harman: It falls to the police to investigate the possible commission of any offences under the Video Recordings Act 1984 by those selling Restricted 18 videos via mail order advertisements. I share your concerns over this issue and shall refer the matter to the Home Office.
	Where the police have instigated proceedings, or referred a case to the Crown Prosecution Service for advice, the CPS will decide whether a prosecution should follow having applied the tests set out in the Code for Crown Prosecutors.

Discontinued Cases

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Solicitor-General how many criminal and magistrate court cases were discontinued per year in absolute terms and as a percentage of all cases, in each region and as a percentage of the total acquittals; and how many arose (a) from the jury and (b) following an order or direction of the judge.

Harriet Harman: holding answer 14 February 2002
	Table 1 shows the number of defendants whose cases were discontinued in each of the last three years, and expresses these as a percentage of completed cases in magistrates courts.
	Table 2 shows for the same period the number of defendants whose case resulted in a judge ordered acquittal after the prosecution offered no evidence; the number resulting in a judge directed acquittal; and the number acquitted on the verdict of the jury after a full trial.
	Each of these outcomes is also shown as a percentage of completed cases in the Crown court.
	
		Discontinuance in magistrates courts—Table 1
		
			   1999  2000  2001  
			 Total Discontinued Percentage Discontinued Percentage Discontinued Percentage 
		
		
			 P01 Avon and Somerset 164,682 12.1 166,001 12.8 172,398 13.1 
			 P02 Bedfordshire 1,132 10.5 1,148 11.9 1,575 14.4 
			 P03 Cambridgeshire 1,537 9.1 1,249 8.5 1,153 10.4 
			 P04 Cheshire 1,915 8.6 2,140 10.1 2,028 9.8 
			 P06 Cleveland 2,206 11.2 2,002 10.0 2,326 11.5 
			 P07 Cumbria 1,627 9.7 1,315 9.6 1,287 9.5 
			 P08 Derbyshire 2,290 11.7 2,215 12.0 2,167 11.1 
			 P09 Devon and Cornwall 3,473 12.2 3,438 12.1 3,089 12.2 
			 P10 Dorset 1,269 9.6 1,636 12.0 1,471 11.6 
			 P11 Durham 1,740 9.7 1,536 9.8 1,509 10.1 
			 P12 Dyfed Powys 1,696 11.5 1,716 12.5 1,717 13.7 
			 P13 Essex 3,477 12.0 3,432 13.7 2,997 11.5 
			 P14 Gloucestershire 2,254 15.1 2,410 16.9 2,318 16.4 
			 P15 Greater Manchester 9,480 10.6 9,410 10.8 9,985 11.1 
			 P16 Gwent 2,364 12.5 2,303 12.3 2,217 12.0 
			 P17 Hampshire 4,333 10.1 3,842 9.2 3,769 10.0 
			 P18 Hertfordshire 1,695 10.0 2,161 11.1 2,280 11.8 
			 P19 Humberside 1,852 8.1 1,962 9.1 2,121 9.9 
			 P20 Kent 4,793 14.4 4,390 13.8 3,816 12.1 
			 P21 Lancashire 8,769 15.5 9,064 16.3 8,834 17.0 
			 P22 Leicestershire 2,925 12.6 2,658 12.3 2,714 12.2 
			 P23 Lincolnshire 1,651 11.0 1,804 12.1 2,463 13.1 
			 P24 Merseyside 5,022 10.9 5,655 12.3 5,074 12.5 
			 P25 Metropolitan and City 20,779 12.3 19,945 12.8 21,477 12.9 
			 P26 Norfolk 1,472 8.4 1,939 11.1 1,850 10.6 
			 P27 Northamptonshire 1,672 12.9 2,060 13.9 2,324 14.7 
			 P28 Northumbria 6,030 11.4 6,659 12.8 6,090 12.0 
			 P29 North Wales 1,579 9.3 1,614 9.6 1,944 11.9 
			 P30 North Yorkshire 1,938 11.3 1,707 11.6 1,577 12.0 
			 P31 Nottinghamshire 3,795 12.5 4,103 13.9 3,866 13.7 
			 P32 South Wales 6,308 13.8 6,276 14.6 6,349 14.6 
			 P33 South Yorkshire 4,049 11.4 4,192 11.7 4,464 12.6 
			 P34 Staffordshire 3,882 13.0 3,536 12.7 3,357 13.2 
			 P35 Suffolk 1,220 9.3 1,361 11.7 1,487 12.1 
			 P36 Surrey 1,660 10.2 1,924 12.1 1,998 13.0 
			 P37 Sussex 3,480 12.9 3,942 15.4 4,043 15.7 
			 P38 Thames Valley 5,449 13.7 5,250 14.5 8,623 16.1 
			 P39 Warwickshire 714 8.4 685 8.5 786 9.1 
			 P40 West Mercia 2,969 11.4 2,987 11.4 3,415 12.6 
			 P41 West Midlands 12,320 15.3 11,659 14.8 11,607 13.7 
			 P42 West Yorkshire 12,142 14.4 14,275 18.0 16,528 20.6 
			 P43 Wiltshire 1,159 9.2 1,056 8.7 1,155 9.00 
		
	
	
		Crown court acquittals—Table 2
		
			  Judge ordered acquittals (percentage) Judge directed acquittals (percentage) Acquittals after trial (percentage) 
		
		
			 1999
			 Total 9,331 (10.7) 1,849 (2.1) 6,958 (8.0) 
			 P01 Avon and Somerset 220 (9.7) 48 (2.1) 178 (7.8) 
			 P02 Bedfordshire 69 (9.6) 27 (3.8) 86 (12.00 
			 P03 Cambridgeshire 69 (6.6) 19 (1.8) 81 (7.8) 
			 P04 Cheshire 121 (7.6) 35 (2.2) 119 (7.50 
			 P06 Cleveland 112 (9.2) 14 (1.2) 55 (4.5) 
			 P07 Cumbria 60 (9.0) 9 (1.3) 35 (5.2) 
			 P08 Derbyshire 102 (7.7) 16 (1.2) 70 (5.3) 
			 P09 Devon and Cornwall 214 (11.9) 41 (2.3) 111 (6.2) 
			 P10 Dorset 72 (8.5) 15 (1.8) 74 (8.7) 
			 P11 Durham 84 (7.8) 18 (1.7) 59 (5.5) 
			 P12 Dyfed Powys 58 (9.0) 18 (2.8) 68 (10.5) 
			 P13 Essex 250 (12.7) 39 (2.0) 212 (10.8) 
			 P14 Gloucestershire 68 (13.1) 10 (1.9) 32 (6.1) 
			 P15 Greater Manchester 623 (11.2) 144 (2.6) 477 (8.5) 
			 P16 Gwent 80 (7.6) 12 (1.1) 89 (8.5) 
			 P17 Hampshire 346 (11.3) 82 (2.7) 321 (10.5) 
			 P18 Hertfordshire 124 (10.4) 32 (2.7) 128 (10.8) 
			 P19 Humberside 82 (6.5) 18 (1.4) 57 (4.5) 
			 P20 Kent 281 (13.8) 80 (3.9) 179 (8.8) 
			 P21 Lancashire 402 (13.8) 51 (1.8) 153 (5.3) 
			 P22 Leicestershire 174 (11.0) 17 (1.1) 103 (6.5) 
			 P23 Lincolnshire 56 (8.2) 11 (1.6) 35 (5.1) 
			 P24 Merseyside 399 (11.6) 49 (1.4) 259 (7.5) 
			 P25 Metropolitan and City 1,864 (13.7) 461 (3.4) 1,888 (13.9) 
			 P26 Norfolk 78 (10.5) 16 (2.2) 53 (7.1) 
			 P27 Northamptonshire 111 (12.0) 8 (0.9) 41 (4.4) 
			 P28 Northumbria 337 (11.2) 55 (1.8) 131 (4.3) 
			 P29 North Wales 45 (6.8) 11 (1.7) 39 (5.9) 
			 P30 North Yorkshire 103 (9.7) 9 (0.8) 67 (6.3) 
			 P31 Nottinghamshire 252 (9.1) 23 (0.8) 101 (3.7) 
			 P32 South Wales 212 (8.3) 45 (1.8) 192 (7.5) 
			 P33 South Yorkshire 268 (9.2) 40 (1.4) 119 (4.1) 
			 P34 Staffordshire 170 (11.1) 35 (2.3) 99 (6.5) 
			 P35 Suffolk 41 (5.1) 22 (2.7) 98 (12.1) 
			 P36 Surrey 97 (11.8) 15 (1.8) 86 (10.5) 
			 P37 Sussex 182 (11.4) 43 (2.7) 152 (9.5) 
			 P38 Thames Valley 125 (8.8) 35 (2.5) 151 (10.6) 
			 P39 Warwickshire 16 (4.6) 6 (1.7) 5 (1.4) 
			 P40 West Mercia 114 (9.5) 24 (2.0) 75 (6.3) 
			 P41 West Midlands 678 (11.8) 121 (2.1) 369 (6.4) 
			 P42 West Yorkshire 542 (8.5) 71 (1.1) 271 (4.2) 
			 P43 Wiltshire 30 (7.1) 4 (0.9) 40 (9.4) 
		
	
	
		
			  Judge ordered acquittals/ percentage Judge directed acquittals/ percentage Acquittals after trial/ percentage 
		
		
			 2000
			 Total 10,070 (11.9) 1,789 (2.1) 6,729 (8.0) 
			 P01 Avon and Somerset 255 (12.3) 38 (1.8) 177 (8.5) 
			 P02 Bedfordshire 75 (10.5) 22 (3.1) 101 (14.1) 
			 P03 Cambridgeshire 89 (8.3) 10 (0.9) 97 (9.0) 
			 P04 Cheshire 135 (8.4) 47 (2.9) 144 (9.0) 
			 P06 Cleveland 113 (9.5) 9 (0.8) 76 (6.5) 
			 P07 Cumbria 57 (7.6) 14 (1.9) 58 (7.8) 
			 P08 Derbyshire 184 (11.3) 32 (2.0) 122 (7.5) 
			 P09 Devon and Cornwall 196 (11.8) 40 (2.4) 129 (7.8) 
			 P10 Dorset 62 (8.6) 36 (5.0) 62 (8.6) 
			 P11 Durham 113 (11.7) 27 (2.8) 44 (4.6) 
			 P12 Dyfed Powys 40 (8.5) 22 (4.7) 54 (11.4) 
			 P13 Essex 155 (10.6) 26 (1.8) 147 (10.1 
			 P14 Gloucestershire 47 (11.1) 9 (2.1) 44 (10.4) 
			 P15 Greater Manchester 727 (12.9) 144 (2.5) 399 (7.1) 
			 P16 Gwent 81 (7.6) 13 (1.2) 77 (7.3) 
			 P17 Hampshire 390 (12.2) 101 (3.2) 364 (11.4) 
			 P18 Hertfordshire 127 (12.1) 20 (1.9) 135 (12.9) 
			 P19 Humberside 87 (7.4) 18 (1.5) 60 (5.1) 
			 P20 Kent 254 (12.1) 54 (2.6) 212 (10.1) 
			 P21 Lancashire 430 (14.7) 40 (1.4) 139 (4.7) 
			 P22 Leicestershire 207 (12.4) 14 (0.8) 59 (4.1) 
			 P23 Lincolnshire 68 (9.7) 16 (2.3) 37 (5.3) 
			 P24 Merseyside 524 (14.4) 61 (1.7) 263 (7.2) 
			 P25 Metropolitan and City 1,853 (14.4) 411 (3.2) 1,668 (13.0) 
			 P26 Norfolk 100 (12.4) 17 (2.1) 83 (10.3) 
			 P27 Northamptonshire 124 (15.4) 11 (1.4) 45 (5.6) 
			 P28 Northumbria 327 (11.5) 38 (1.3) 108 (3.8) 
			 P29 North Wales 40 (5.4) 12 (1.6) 72 (9.7) 
			 P30 North Yorkshire 119 (13.6) 13 (1.5) 47 (5.4) 
			 P31 Nottinghamshire 300 (11.8) 38 (1.5) 96 (3.8) 
			 P32 South Wales 194 (7.8) 41 (1.7) 214 (8.6) 
			 P33 South Yorkshire 251 (8.7) 24 (0.8) 96 (3.3) 
			 P34 Staffordshire 201 (13.4) 31 (2.1) 85 (5.7) 
			 P35 Suffolk 60 (8.0) 15 (2.0) 70 (9.3) 
			 P36 Surrey 88 (12.2) 14 (1.9) 70 (9.7) 
			 P37 Sussex 219 (14.0) 32 (2.0) 140 (9.0) 
			 P38 Thames Valley 95 (6.8) 44 (3.2) 161 (11.6) 
			 P39 Warwickshire 23 (6.9) (0.0) 12 (3.6) 
			 P40 West Mercia 93 (7.2) 39 (3.0) 79 (6.1) 
			 P41 West Midlands 858 (13.7) 106 (1.7) 388 (6.2) 
			 P42 West Yorkshire 685 (12.5) 75 (1.4) 260 (4.8) 
			 P43 Wiltshire 24 (7.0) 16 (4.3) 23 (6.7) 
		
	
	
		
			  Judge ordered acquittals/ percentage Judge directed acquittals/ percentage Acquittals after trial/ percentage 
		
		
			 2001
			 Total 11,292 (13.7) 1,495 (1.8) 6,630 (8.0) 
			 P01 Avon and Somerset 243 (12.9) 31 (1.7) 151 (8.0) 
			 P02 Bedfordshire 43 (6.7) 6 (0.9) 83 (13.0) 
			 P03 Cambridgeshire 68 (7.3) 17 (1.8) 58 (6.2) 
			 P04 Cheshire 142 (9.7) 22 (1.5) 148 (10.2) 
			 P06 Cleveland 172 (12.1) 18 (1.3) 86 (6.0) 
			 P07 Cumbria 88 (10.7) 8 (1.0) 65 (7.9) 
			 P08 Derbyshire 210 (12.9) 27 (1.7) 98 (6.0) 
			 P09 Devon and Cornwall 186 (13.3) 31 (2.2) 109 (7.8) 
			 P10 Dorset 74 (10.5) 20 (2.8) 72 (10.2) 
			 P11 Durham 170 (14.7) 12 (1.0) 61 (5.3) 
			 P12 Dyfed Powys 62 (12.3) 5 (1.0) 33 (6.6) 
			 P13 Essex 159 (12.1) 12 (0.9) 138 (10.5) 
			 P14 Gloucestershire 42 (8.9) 6 (1.3) 49 (10.3) 
			 P15 Greater Manchester 808 (14.5) 131 (2.3) 368 (6.6) 
			 P16 Gwent 71 (7.3) 12 (1.2) 100 (10.2) 
			 P17 Hampshire 363 (13.9) 71 (2.7) 293 (11.2) 
			 P18 Hertfordshire 138 (10.9) 24 (1.9) 158 (22.5) 
			 P19 Humberside 92 (7.7) 16 (1.3) 64 (5.4) 
			 P20 Kent 220 (12.6) 52 (3.0) 173 (9.9) 
			 P21 Lancashire 477 (16.0) 52 (1.7) 210 (7.0) 
			 P22 Leicestershire 217 (14.3) 9 (0.6) 70 (4.6) 
			 P23 Lincolnshire 56 (9.7) 14 (2.4) 34 (5.9) 
			 P24 Merseyside 613 (17.1) 64 (1.8) 330 (9.2) 
			 P25 Metropolitan and City 2,245 (16.7) 376 (2.8) 1,675 (12.5) 
			 P26 Norfolk 63 (8.9) 11 (1.6) 56 (7.9) 
			 P27 Northamptonshire 82 (12.0) 7 (1.0) 46 (6.8) 
			 P28 Northumbria 362 (12.1) 30 (1.0) 118 (3.9) 
			 P29 North Wales 66 (9.7) 6 (0.9) 41 (6.0) 
			 P30 North Yorkshire 68 (8.0) 19 (2.2) 29 (3.4) 
			 P31 Nottinghamshire 329 (15.1) 16 (0.7) 65 (3.0) 
			 P32 South Wales 295 (11.7) 33 (1.3) 204 (8.1) 
			 P33 South Yorkshire 397 (12.8) 32 (1.0) 146 (4.7) 
			 P34 Staffordshire 159 (11.9) 11 (0.8) 76 (5.7) 
			 P35 Suffolk 55 (7.7) 23 (3.2) 103 (14.4) 
			 P36 Surrey 95 (11.6) 19 (2.3) 80 (9.8) 
			 P37 Sussex 292 (16.1) 29 (1.6) 164 (9.0) 
			 P38 Thames Valley 157 (10.4) 51 (3.4) 133 (8.8) 
			 P39 Warwickshire 18 (5.6) 1 (0.3) 9 (2.8) 
			 P40 West Mercia 134 (11.0) 29 (2.4) 88 (7.2) 
			 P41 West Midlands 1,248 (18.1) 88 (1.3) 389 (5.6) 
			 P42 West Yorkshire 480 (12.4) 47 (1.2) 222 (5.7) 
			 P43 Wiltshire 33 (9.0) 7 (1.9) 35 (9.5)

Discontinued Cases

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Solicitor-General if she will list the groups of crimes to which discontinuance statistics apply and provide statistics for these crimes on a regional basis for each year since 1992.

Harriet Harman: holding answer 14 February 2002
	Discontinuance statistics apply to the full range of crimes handled by the Crown Prosecution Service. Any offence, from relatively minor traffic matters to the most serious crimes, may lead to discontinuance if the evidential and public interest criteria specified in the Code for Crown Prosecutors are not met.
	However, the CPS holds no central record on the outcome of particular crimes: the information is held on individual files and could be retrieved only at disproportionate cost.
	The table therefore shows the total number of discontinuances in each year since 1992, and expresses this as a proportion of cases completed in magistrates courts. The same information is also shown for each of the 42 Areas of the Service since present records began.
	
		Discontinuance 1992–2001
		
			   1992  1993  1994  1995  1996  
			  Total % Total % Total % Total % Total % 
		
		
			 42 Areas 193,110 13.3 175,025 12.8 159,803 11.7 156,628 12.0 153,274 12.0 
			 P01—Avon and Somerset — — — — — — 3,941 — 3,833 17.6 
			 P02—Bedfordshire — — — — — — 1,563 — 1,665 18.3 
			 P03—Cambridgeshire — — — — — — 1,686 — 1,636 14.8 
			 P04—Cheshire — — — — — — 1,567 — 1,655 10.6 
			 P06—Cleveland — — — — — — 2,821 — 2,598 23.8 
			 P07—Cumbria — — — — — — 1,705 — 1,715 13.9 
			 P08—Derbyshire — — — — — — 2,009 — 2,606 19.3 
			 P09—Devon and Cornwall — — — — — — 2,796 — 3,179 16.1 
			 P10—Dorset — — — — — — 1,383 — 1,898 16.0 
			 P11—Durham — — — — — — 1,811 — 1,355 16.2 
			 P12—Dyfed Powys — — — — — — 1,513 — 1,511 15.9 
			 P13—Essex — — — — — — 2,400 — 2,669 14.1 
			 P14—Gloucestershire — — — — — — 2,009 — 2,312 24.5 
			 P15—Greater Manchester — — — — — — 7,454 — 9,101 13.3 
			 P16—Gwent — — — — — — 2,049 — 2,178 21.3 
			 P17—Hampshire — — — — — — 2,374 — 3,084 11.3 
			 P18—Hertfordshire — — — — — — 1,782 — 1,973 17.0 
			 P19—Humberside — — — — — — 1,748 — 1,909 12.7 
			 P20—Kent — — — — — — 3,336 — 3,529 17.0 
			 P21—Lancashire — — — — — — 4,113 — 4,532 15.2 
			 P22—Leicestershire — — — — — — 4,389 — 3,606 23.0 
			 P23—Lincolnshire — — — — — — 2,016 — 1,783 20.9 
			 P24—Merseyside — — — — — — 4,032 — 4,176 13.5 
			 P25—Metropolitan and City — — — — — — 31,338 — 25,339 17.5 
			 P26—Norfolk — — — — — — 1,409 — 1,578 14.0 
			 P27—Northamptonshire — — — — — — 2,073 — 1,819 23.1 
			 P28—Northumbria — — — — — — 6,056 — 5,123 17.2 
			 P29—North Wales — — — — — — 1,998 — 2,091 15.3 
			 P30—North Yorkshire — — — — — — 1,474 — 1,401 13.5 
			 P31—Nottinghamshire — — — — — — 3,281 — 4,095 20.0 
			 P32—South Wales — — — — — — 5,597 — 6,074 19.6 
			 P33—South Yorkshire — — — — — — 5,725 — 4,919 21.5 
			 P34—Staffordshire — — — — — — 3,461 — 3,068 15.4 
			 P35—Suffolk — — — — — — 905 — 1,210 13.8 
			 P36—Surrey — — — — — — 1,913 — 1,926 16.1 
			 P37—Sussex — — — — — — 3,146 — 3,023 15.4 
			 P38—Thames Valley — — — — — — 4,744 — 4,854 16.7 
			 P39—Warwickshire — — — — — — 926 — 852 11.8 
			 P40—West Mercia — — — — — — 2,543 — 2,416 14.6 
			 P41—West Midlands — — — — — — 6,636 — 7,035 14.3 
			 P42—West Yorkshire — — — — — — 11,473 — 10,503 20.2 
			 P43—Wiltshire — — — — — — 1,432 — 1,420 13.2 
		
	
	
		Discontinuance 1992–2001
		
			   1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  
			  Total % Total % Total % Total % Total % 
		
		
			 42 Areas 161,461 12.2 162,661 12.0 164,682 12.1 166,001 12.8 172,398 13.1 
			 P01—Avon and Somerset 3,922 12.5 4,152 12.0 4,574 13.1 3,345 10.4 2,548 8.3 
			 P02—Bedfordshire 1,784 12.4 1,451 11.6 1,132 10.5 1,148 11.9 1,575 14.4 
			 P03—Cambridgeshire 1,734 10.0 1,667 9.5 1,537 9.1 1,249 8.5 1,153 10.4 
			 P04—Cheshire 1,617 7.3 1,776 7.6 1,915 8.6 2,140 10.1 2,028 9.8 
			 P06—Cleveland 2,421 13.8 2,418 12.9 2,206 11.2 2,002 10.0 2,326 11.5 
			 P07—Cumbria 1,848 10.3 1,582 9.2 1,627 9.7 1,315 9.6 1,287 9.5 
			 P08—Derbyshire 2,472 13.3 2,666 12.1 2,290 11.7 2,215 12.0 2,167 11.1 
			 P09—Devon and Cornwall 3,589 12.5 3,651 13.0 3,473 12.2 3,438 12.1 3,089 12.2 
			 P10—Dorset 1,643 12.1 1,453 11.0 1,269 9.6 1,636 12.0 1,471 11.6 
			 P11—Durham 1,391 11.5 1,631 10.9 1,740 9.7 1,536 9.8 1,509 10.1 
			 P12—Dyfed Powys 1,423 11.1 1,389 10.1 1,696 11.5 1,716 12.5 1,717 13.7 
			 P13—Essex 3,170 11.2 3,042 10.4 3,477 12.0 3,432 13.7 2,997 11.5 
			 P14—Gloucestershire 2,390 17.4 2,369 15.3 2,254 15.1 2,410 16.9 2,318 16.4 
			 P15—Greater Manchester 8,588 9.9 9,410 10.3 9,480 10.6 9,410 10.8 9,985 11.1 
			 P16—Gwent 2,605 14.8 2,494 13.0 2,364 12.5 2,303 12.3 2,217 12.0 
			 P17—Hampshire 3,530 8.9 3,196 8.2 4,333 10.1 3,842 9.2 3,769 10.0 
			 P18—Hertfordshire 2,214 13.0 2,238 13.0 1,696 10.0 2,161 11.1 2,280 11.8 
			 P19—Humberside 1,841 8.8 2,042 9.4 1,852 8.1 1,962 9.1 2,121 9.9 
			 P20—Kent 3,932 13.4 4,356 14.0 4,793 14.4 4,390 13.8 3,816 12.1 
			 P21—Lancashire 8,417 14.9 8,806 15.2 8,769 15.5 9,064 16.3 8,834 17.0 
			 P22—Leicestershire 3,466 14.3 2,965 12.8 2,925 12.6 2,658 12.3 2,714 12.2 
			 P23—Lincolnshire 1,807 13.9 1,746 12.0 1,651 11.0 1,804 12.1 2,463 13.1 
			 P24—Merseyside 4,418 9.7 4,479 10.2 5,022 10.9 5,655 12.3 5,074 12.5 
			 P25—Metropolitan and City 24,834 12.7 20,985 11.4 20,779 12.3 19,945 12.8 21,477 12.9 
			 P26—Norfolk 1,790 10.9 1,591 9.8 1,472 8.4 1,939 11.1 1,850 10.6 
			 P27—Northamptonshire 1,492 14.2 1,860 13.8 1,672 12.9 2,060 13.9 2,324 14.7 
			 P28—Northumbria 5,183 11.9 5,677 10.9 6,030 11.4 6,659 12.8 6,090 12.0 
			 P29—North Wales 1,939 11.6 1,648 9.9 1,579 9.3 1,614 9.6 1,944 11.9 
			 P30—North Yorkshire 1,724 10.7 1,624 10.6 1,928 11.3 1,707 11.6 1,577 12.0 
			 P31—Nottinghamshire 3,685 13.8 4,258 13.6 3,795 12.5 4,103 13.9 3,866 13.7 
			 P32—South Wales 6,642 14.1 6,850 14.5 6,308 13.8 6,276 14.6 6,349 14.6 
			 P33—South Yorkshire 4,732 14.3 3,998 13.1 4,049 11.4 4,192 11.7 4,464 12.6 
			 P34—Staffordshire 3,670 13.2 3,796 13.1 3,882 13.0 3,536 12.7 3,357 13.2 
			 P35—Suffolk 1,255 10.3 1,190 9.9 1,220 9.3 1,361 11.7 1,487 12.1 
			 P36—Surrey 1,849 11.1 1,464 9.6 1,660 10.2 1,924 12.1 1,998 13.0 
			 P37—Sussex 3,468 12.3 3,604 12.8 3,480 12.9 3,942 15.4 4,043 15.7 
			 P38—Thames Valley 4,616 11.8 5,407 13.4 5,449 13.7 5,250 14.5 8,623 16.1 
			 P39—Warwickshire 729 8.0 717 8.4 714 8.4 685 8.5 786 9.1 
			 P40—West Mercia 2,283 10.5 2,613 10.8 2,969 11.4 2,987 11.4 3,415 12.6 
			 P41—West Midlands 8,934 11.8 10,714 13.3 12,320 15.3 11,659 14.8 11,607 13.7 
			 P42—West Yorkshire 11,070 14.3 12,108 15.0 12,142 14.4 14,275 18.0 16,528 20.6 
			 P43—Wiltshire 1,344 9.4 1,578 10.8 1,159 9.2 1,056 8.7 1,155 9.0

Discontinued Cases

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Solicitor-General what research has been carried out to investigate the reasons for differences in the discontinuance rates for charges of violence against the person, criminal damage and motoring offences.

Harriet Harman: holding answer 14 February 2002
	A survey of discontinuance was conducted in six branches of the Crown Prosecution Service during the period October to December 1998.
	Data were collected on a matrix of 25 reasons for discontinuance and 11 types of offence, as shown in the table. The survey showed that 18.5 per cent. of all discontinuances related to violence against the person, 7.9 per cent. to criminal damage, and 29 per cent. to motoring offences.
	The survey showed considerable variations in the reason for discontinuance for the various types of offence. The most common reasons were as follows.
	In offences of violence against the person most discontinuances were recorded where a victim refused to give evidence or retracted a complaint. These amounted to almost 9 per cent. of total discontinuances for the period. In offences of criminal damage the most common reason was the lack of an essential legal element in the prosecution case. These amounted to 1.4 per cent. of all discontinuances. In motoring offences the most common reason was the lack of an essential legal element in the prosecution case: these amounted to 7.4 per cent. of all discontinuance. Other significant reasons were unreliable evidence of identification (4.5 per cent.) and the likelihood of conviction resulting in only a small or nominal penalty (4.5 per cent.).
	
		Discontinuance survey October to December 1998—Reasons for discontinuance as percentage of all discontinuances
		
			 Reason for discontinuance Violence against person Sexual offences Burglary Robbery Theft and handling stolen goods Fraud and forgery Criminal damage Drug offences Motoring offences Public order Other offences Total 
		
		
			 1. Inadmissible evidence—Breach of PACE 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.1 
			 2. Inadmissible evidence—Other 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.2 
			 3. Unreliable confession 0.0 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.2 
			 4. Conflict of evidence 0.7 0.2 0.8 0.0 0.7 0.0 0.2 0.1 1.1 0.6 0.1 4.4 
			 5. Essential legal element missing 2.3 0.3 1.9 0.2 6.4 0.4 1.4 0.7 7.4 1.8 1.6 24.4 
			 6. Unreliable witness(es) 2.9 0.5 0.3 0.1 0.6 0.1 1.1 0.0 0.3 0.2 0.1 6.1 
			 7. Identification unreliable 0.4 0.0 1.0 0.4 0.7 0.0 0.1 0.0 4.5 0.7 0.3 8.1  
			 8. Effect on victims health 0.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.4 
			 9. Defendant elderly/suffering significant ill health 0.1 0.5 0.4 0.0 0.7 0.0 0.2 0.0 0.4 0.3 0.2 2.7 
			 10. Genuine mistake or misunderstanding 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.4 0.1 0.2 0.8 
			 11. Loss/harm minor and one incident 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.2 0.1 0.1 0.5 0.2 1.1 
			 12. Loss/harm put right 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.2 0.0 0.4 0.0 0.6 0.1 0.0 1.4 
			 13. Long delay between offence and charge/trial date 0.5 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.4 1.1 0.0 0.0 2.3 
			 14. Very small/nominal penalty likely 0.3 0.0 1.1 0.0 3.2 0.6 1.1 0.6 4.5 1.4 1.6 14.4 
			 15. Information likely to harm national security/international relations 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 
			 16. Caution more suitable 0.4 0.0 0.0 0.0 1.3 0.1 0.9 0.6 0.1 1.6 0.5 5.4 
			 17. Youth of offender 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.4 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.5 
			 18. Case not ready/adjournment refused 0.3 0.1 0.1 0.0 1.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 1.0 0.2 0.1 3.1 
			 19. Offence taken into consideration elsewhere 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.1 0.2 0.0 0.4 0.0 0.2 0.1 0.1 1.2 
			 20. Victim refuses to give evidence/retracts 8.9 0.2 0.5 0.0 0.9 0.1 0.9 0.0 0.3 1.0 0.3 12.9 
			 21. Other civilian witness refuses to give evidence/retracts 0.4 0.0 0.1 0.1 0.4 0.0 0.2 0.0 0.2 0.0 0.0 1.4 
			 22. Victim fails to attend unexpectedly 0.8 0.0 0.2 0.0 0.3 0.0 0.2 0.0 0.2 0.1 0.0 1.7 
			 23. Other civilian witness fails to attend unexpectedly 0.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.2 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.2 0.0 0.0 0.6 
			 24. Police witness fails to attend unexpectedly 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1 0.0 1.1 0.1 0.0 1.2 
			 25. Documents produced at court 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 5.3 0.0 0.0 5.4 
			 Total 18.5 1.7 6.7 1.0 17.0 1.7 7.9 2.5 29.1 8.7 5.4 100

Victims Charter

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Solicitor-General when the Victims Charter was last revised.

Keith Bradley: I have been asked to reply.
	The Victims Charter was last revised in 1996, and is currently under review. A new Charter, or equivalent document, will take account of recent developments, and will reflect the Government's success in improving support and services for victims.

Crime Statistics

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Solicitor-General if she will make a statement on how the balance of serious crime and minor crime changed since 1992 as a percentage of total crimes committed.

John Denham: I have been asked to reply.
	According to the British Crime Survey (BCS), the proportion of violent crime was 18 per cent. in 1991, 20 per cent. in 1993 (there was no survey undertaken in 1992), and 20 per cent. in the year 2000. The British Crime Survey also shows that the number of violent offences has decreased by 28 per cent. between 1993 and 2000.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Prison Service Medal

Ian Cawsey: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he will publish the Royal Warrant for the Northern Ireland Prison Service Medal.

John Reid: I am pleased to inform my hon. Friend that the Royal Warrant for the Northern Ireland Prison Service Medal was published today and I have placed copies in the Libraries of the House.
	I am delighted that the staff of the Northern Ireland Prison Service are being recognised for the invaluable work they have carried out on behalf of the community over the last 30 years, often at great personal cost.
	Twenty nine officers have been murdered and others, and their families, subjected to threats and intimidation. Despite that they have continued to act professionally and have provided an invaluable service to all the people of Northern Ireland.

Saville Inquiry

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much public funding has been provided to the legal representatives of the families appearing at the Saville Inquiry, broken down by each (a) barrister and (b) firm of solicitors involved.

Des Browne: The payments made to the legal representatives appearing at the Bloody Sunday Inquiry on behalf of the families or the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association (NICRA) are set out in the following table. The figures include VAT, where that is paid, and, in most cases, expenses as well as fees.
	The figures represent the position as at 12 February 2002. The prospective Judicial Review on Barristers' fees and the prospective judgment of the Senior Costs Judge on Solicitors' fees could affect the level of payments already made in respect of the period of work covered.
	
		
			Period covered  
			  Payments made (£) From To 
		
		
			  Senior counsel representing the families(19) 
			 Lord Gifford 309,944 October 1998 September 2001 
			 Arthur Harvey 398,855 July 1998 November 2001 
			 Michael Lavery 215,317 November 2000 December 2001 
			 B. J. MacDonald(20) 142,101 September 1998 September 2000 
			 P. T. MacDonald(21) 65,800 April 1998 June 1999 
			 Michael Mansfield 296,857 March 1999 October 2001 
			 Elish McDermott 105,309 March 2000 June 2001 
			 Seamus Treacy(22) 370,301 March 1998 June 2001 
			 
			  Senior counsel representing NICRA 
			 Sir Louis Blom-Cooper 190,647 December 2000 December 2001 
			 
			  Junior counsel representing the families 
			 John Coyle 213,931 September 1999 May 2001 
			 Fiona Doherty 92,967 October 2000 May 2001 
			 Ciaran Harvey 165,969 December 2000 November 2001 
			 Richard Harvey 101,463 October 2000 March 2001 
			 Brian Kennedy 303,498 July 1999 November 2001 
			 Philip Magee(23) 83,175 June 1998 September 2000 
			 Kieran Mallon 361,005 March 1999 December 2001 
			 Brian McCartney 319,512 July 1998 June 2001 
			 Karen Quinlivan 84,169 March 1999 June 2000 
			 Patricia Smyth 241,096 October 1998 September 2001 
			 Michael Topolski(24) 139,940 November 2000 June 2001 
			 
			  Junior counsel representing NICRA 
			 Paddy O'Hanlon 101,106 November 2000 January 2001 
			 
			  Solicitors representing the families(25) 
			 Barr and Co. 170,061 February 1999 August 2001 
			 Brendan Kearney 531,452 July 1999 November 2001 
			 Desmond Doherty and Co. 553,320 November 1998 December 2001 
			 MacDermott and McGurk 529,944 November 1998 December 2001 
			 Madden and Finucane 4,511,193 January 1998 November 2001 
			 McCann and McCann 183,834 October 1998 December 2001 
			 McCartney and Casey 535,084 November 1998 December 2001 
			 
			  Solicitors representing NICRA(26) 
		
	
	(19) In addition, the following senior counsel have represented/are representing some of the families but have yet to submit fee claims: Kevin Finnegan, Eoin McGonigal, Declan Morgan and Reg Weir.
	(20) Left the case (as a junior) in September 2000 and rejoined the case (as a senior) July 2001.
	(21) Left the case June 1999.
	(22) Having started as a junior in March 1998, became a senior counsel in September 2000.
	(23) Left the case September 2000.
	(24) Left the case June 2001.
	(25) Includes payments made in respect of witness statement-taking work.
	(26) The firm of solicitors representing NICRA, Francis Keenan, has yet to submit a claim for payment.

Health and Safety (Computers)

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many employees in his Department who regularly use computers have taken up the provision of a free eye test; and how this service is advertised to (a) current and (b) new staff.

John Reid: 115 officers who regularly use computers have taken up the provision of a free eye test since 1 April 2001.
	As eyesight testing procedures are revised staff are notified by an internal circular.
	New staff are advised of the provision of free eye tests at the induction session, which takes place within two weeks of an officer joining the Department.

IT Contracts

Richard Younger-Ross: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what has been the total expenditure of his Department on IT systems and support in each year from May 1997 to date; how many IT contracts have been let in each of those years; of the other main contracting party in each of those contracts, how many have been (a) companies whose registered office is in (i) England and Wales, (ii) Scotland and (iii) Northern Ireland and (b) foreign companies; and what are the names of the companies falling within category (a).

John Reid: The following table relates to contracts exceeding £50,000.
	
		
			  Year  England and Wales  Northern Ireland Total IT systems and support expenditure (£) 
		
		
			 1997–98  Ramick Computing (NI) Ltd. 3,048,148 
			 1998–99 Bull Information Systems Ltd.  2,030,657 
			   HCP Electronics  
			   EDC Communications  
			 1999–2000 Compaq Computers Ltd.  4,050,710 
			   Hallmark Solutions (NI)  
			   Core Systems  
			   Sanderson (NI) Ltd.  
			 2000–01 Pecaso Ltd.  5,848,049 
			  Photobase (UK)   
			   Elite Training  
			 2001–02 PA Consultants Ltd.  (27)2,686,083 
			  Partnerships UK   
			  Compaq Computers Ltd.   
			   ICS Computing Ltd.  
		
	
	(27) Estimate, figures unavailable until the end of this financial year
	No contracts have been let to companies in Scotland or abroad except a contract with Microsoft (2000) where the contract office is Dublin.

Police Service

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on progress with the Public Service Agreement target of increasing Catholic representation in the police service.

Jane Kennedy: The response from the Catholic community to the recruitment competitions for the Police Service of Northern Ireland has been very positive. At present this is enabling the chief constable to appoint significantly greater numbers of recruits on a 50 per cent. Catholic 50 per cent. non-Catholic basis than was envisaged by the Independent Commission on Policing. The recruitment arrangements will be kept under regular review, with regard to the progress made towards achievement of a police service which is representative of the Northern Ireland community.

Departmental Sickness Absence

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will commission and publish an independent report on the reasons for the level of sickness absence in his Department.

Jane Kennedy: The Cabinet Office already commissions and publishes an independent annual report "Analysis of Sickness Absence in the Civil Service". This report includes details of the causes of absenteeism. The report for the year 2000 will be published shortly.
	The Northern Ireland Office is committed to meeting the targets for reducing sickness absence which form part of the Department's service delivery agreement.

Interpreters

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many (a) in-house and (b) external (i) Irish-English and (ii) other language translators and interpreters have been employed by criminal justice agencies in the most recent year for which records are available; how many hours of work were contracted externally and at what cost; and what steps he is taking to produce the common list of interpreters recommended by the Criminal Justice Review.

Des Browne: None of the criminal justice agencies employ in-house interpreters or translators.
	Provision of translators and interpretation for the police was contracted to a private agency on 1 February 2001. Records show that since 1 February:
	Four Irish-English translators have been used;
	25 interpreters were used for other languages;
	Approximately 1,271 hours of work has been contracted out;
	Costs stand at £48,300.
	In respect of the Northern Ireland courts service, specific costs are not available. Records show that from March 2001 requests have been made on 14 occasions for translations and, since April 2001, 24 requests have been made for the provision of interpreters. None of these have involved Irish.
	Figures provided by the Northern Ireland prison service indicate that 140 minutes of work at a cost of £4,079.68 was contracted externally in the financial year 2000–01. A payment of £300 was also made to a Mandarin interpreter. In addition existing staff are used to provide Irish/English translations when necessary.
	The development of a common list of interpreters is being considered jointly by the agencies.

Justice (Northern Ireland) Bill

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps he has taken to commission the production of a child-friendly guide to the proposed changes under the Justice (Northern Ireland) Bill in the event of its legislative passage.

Des Browne: The Government will be considering this as part of the work being taken forward on the recommendation, under the review of the criminal justice system, that there should be a public information and education strategy for the criminal justice system. Features proposed by the review (recommendation 14) include the production and distribution of guides to various aspects of criminal justice to target specific groups, including children; publication by all agencies of codes of practice in accessible language; consideration of innovative methods for increasing public understanding such as open days at courts for schools, colleges and the public, and the creation of videos explaining aspects of the criminal justice system; and the inclusion of a criminal justice module in the school civics curriculum.

Private Medical Insurance

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many employees in (a) his Department and (b) his Department's agencies and non-departmental public bodies have had private medical insurance provided for them in each year since 1997–98; what the total cost is; and if he will make a statement.

John Reid: No employees in either (a) the Department or (b) the Department's agencies and non- departmental public bodies have had private medical insurance provided for them in any year since 1997–98.

Departmental Retirement Ages

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will list the retirement ages that apply to the employees of his Department and its agencies, including how many and which categories of employees are affected by each; and if he will make a statement on his Department's policy on flexible retirement.

John Reid: The information is as follows:
	
		Northern Ireland civil servants (NICS)
		
			  Maximum retirement age Number of staff in post 
		
		
			 Grade D2 and D1 appointed before 1 April 1996 65 318 
			 Grade D2 and D1(28) appointed after 1 April 1996 60 267 
			 All grades (excluding D2 and D1)(28) 60 912 
			 Exceptional cases(28) 65 8 
		
	
	(28) The Department may, in exceptional cases, retain an officer, who would otherwise be required to retire at 60 where it is satisfied that it is in the overriding interest of the service to do so.
	
		Home civil servants (HCS)
		
			 Category Maximum retirement age Number of staff ain post 
		
		
			 All grades 60 176 
			 Exceptional cases at departmental discretion 0 10 
		
	
	NICS retirement policy
	The current normal age of retirement rules require that all staff, with the exception of those in grades below grade C who were in post on 31 March 1996, are normally retired at age 60. This policy was adopted in 1996 after detailed analysis of business needs indicated it was necessary, in light of severe financial pressures and to help avoid the need for compulsory redundancies.
	Conditions have changed since then and the policy is currently under review, although it is too early yet to give any indication of what the outcome might be.
	HCS retirement policy
	The normal age is 60 for all grades. However, retention beyond age 60 in exceptional cases remains at departmental discretion.

Secondments

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many staff were seconded between (a) PWC Consulting and PricewaterhouseCoopers, (b) Ernst and Young, (c) Deloitte and Touche, (d) KPMG and (e) Andersen and his Department in (i) 1999–2000, (ii) 2000–01 and (iii) April 2001 to the latest date for which figures are available.

John Reid: No staff have been seconded between PWC Consulting and PricewaterhouseCoopers, Ernst and Young, Deloitte and Touche, KPMG, and the NIO in 1999–2000, 2000–01, or April 2001 to date.

Legal Costs

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what legal costs have been incurred by his Department in each of the last four years.

John Reid: The legal costs incurred by the Northern Ireland Office in each of the last four years are:
	
		
			  £ 
		
		
			 1998–99 6,300,016 
			 1999–2000 6,646,533 
			 2000–01 7,386,657 
			 2001–02 5,652,899 
		
	
	These figures do not include any figures relating to the Bloody Sunday Inquiry.

Police Secondments

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what recent steps he has taken to encourage secondments between the Police Service of Northern Ireland and the Garda.

Jane Kennedy: The Government are working closely with the Irish Government to take forward the implementation of North/South co-operation measures, including lateral entry and secondment, on a reciprocal basis. The two Governments published a timetable on 13 December. Negotiations are progressing on an inter- governmental agreement with the Irish Government, which we hope to sign shortly. This will provide a framework for the development of formal protocols between the Police Service of Northern Ireland and the Garda Síochána covering issues such as long-term personnel exchanges and co-operation on training. Amendments to the legislation will also be taken forward in both jurisdictions, as required.

Right of Silence

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the terms of reference are for the proposed research into the effect of Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 and restrictions on the right of silence at the stage of police questioning; what measures he has proposed to address the needs of those at risk with particular reference to (a) children, (b) members of ethnic or linguistic minorities and (c) people with disabilities; and what steps he has taken to ensure an (i) independent, (ii) cross- community and (iii) lay dimension to the (A) management and (B) evaluation of the research.

Jane Kennedy: Research into the impact of PACE at the stage of police questioning of juveniles is due to be commissioned in March 2002 following the usual competitive tendering procedures. The terms of reference aim to address recommendations 13 and 180 and of the Criminal Justice Review and are currently being finalised. Advice from a leading academic has been sought on the development of the research plan.
	Management of the research will be undertaken by a group comprising, at a minimum, the independent researcher(s), a representative of the commissioning police division, and a representative of the statistics and research branch.
	A report on the research will be published in due course following a process of peer review.

Departmental Expenditure

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will list his Department's total expenditure by month in each financial year since 1997–98.

John Reid: Details of my Department's, including its agencies, total gross expenditure by month in each financial year since 1997–98:
	
		
			  £ 
		
		
			 1997–98 (29)1,012,450,000 
			   
			 1998–99  
			 April 55,894.107 
			 May 64,395,682 
			 June 93,772,629 
			 July 92,608,368 
			 August 76,573,205 
			 September 81,194,294 
			 October 74,110,636 
			 November 82,771,176 
			 December 79,652,458 
			 January 80,805,693 
			 February 79,482,183 
			 March 124,729,274 
			 Total 985,989,705 
			   
			 1999–2000  
			 April 49,516,855 
			 May 93,721,010 
			 June 100,974,430 
			 July 81,889,640 
			 August 78,134,679 
			 September 80,617,464 
			 October 74,467,946 
			 November 82,728,769 
			 December 86,010,979 
			 January 74,319,563 
			 February 95,166,969 
			 March 146,783,865 
			 Total 1,044,332,169 
			   
			 2000–01  
			 April 58,102,920 
			 May 79,050,965 
			 June 66,382,783 
			 July 84,767,165 
			 August 70,880,829 
			 September 63,154,414 
			 October (30)226,044,615 
			 November 65,891,921 
			 December 81,588,559 
			 January 109,426,975 
			 February 80,303,727 
			 March (31)214,022,763 
			 Total 1,199,617,636 
			   
			 2001–02  
			 April 119,824,120 
			 May 97,830,738 
			 June 93,147,672 
			 July 102,700,197 
			 August 80,643,315 
			 September 93,488,332 
			 October 90,034,565 
			 November 93,312,082 
			 December 85,091,525 
			 January (32)140,674,727 
			 February (32)99,674,727 
			 March (32)99,674,727 
			 Total (33)1,196,096,727 
		
	
	(29) In total—unable to provide monthly breakdown for this financial year.
	(30) Includes greater than £100 million for prison redundancy costs.
	(31) Includes greater than £100 for police redundancy costs.
	(32) Estimate.
	(33) Estimate only-exact figures not known until end of financial year.

President of the Irish Republic

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many (a) official and (b) working visits have been carried out in Northern Ireland by the President of the Irish Republic in each year since 1990.

John Reid: Since 1990 the President of the Irish Republic has visited Northern Ireland on 75 occasions. None of the visits was classified as official visits: all were either working or private, although a number included an element of both. A breakdown of those visits by calendar year is shown in the table.
	
		Visits to Northern Ireland by the President of the Irish Republic: -- 1990–2001
		
			  Number of visits 
		
		
			 1990 2 
			 1991 0 
			 1992 3 
			 1993 1 
			 1994 3 
			 1995 3 
			 1996 5 
			 1997 3 
			 1998 8 
			 1999 16 
			 2000 17 
			 2001 14 
			  
			 Total 75

President of the Irish Republic

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the costs to the public were of each visit to Northern Ireland by the President of the Irish Republic in each year since 1997.

John Reid: Apart from the usual security requirements, any costs arising from visits to Northern Ireland by the President of the Irish Republic since 1997 were borne by the organisation visited.

Police Vehicles

Jeffrey M Donaldson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many armour-protected police vehicles have been taken out of service in the past 12 months.

Jane Kennedy: The Chief Constable advises me that no armour protected police vehicles have been taken out of service in the last 12 months.

Section 42 Certificates

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, pursuant to his answer of 12 November 2001, Official Report, column 516W, how many section 42 certificates have been issued in each year since 1976; what further consideration he has given the terms of the Devlin judgment; and how many cases involving section 42 certificates are being considered by a fair employment tribunal.

Jane Kennedy: The information pertaining to section 42 certificates is not recorded centrally but a check of our records shows that 43 certificates have been issued, in respect of 39 individuals, under section 42 of the Fair Employment (NI) Act 1976. The following table gives a breakdown by year.
	
		
			 Year Number of certificates 
		
		
			 1977 1 
			 1978 3 
			 1980 2 
			 1981 4 
			 1982 1 
			 1983 1 
			 1984 (34)6 
			 1985 2 
			 1986 1 
			 1987 2 
			 1988 7 
			 1989 1 
			 1990 3 
			 1991 4 
			 1993 4 
			 1994 (34)1 
		
	
	(34) Of the certificates issued in 1984 and 1994, four were reissues.
	No further certificates have been issued since 1994.
	Following further consideration of the implications of the Devlin judgment, it has been decided not to seek a reference of this case to the Grand Chamber of the Court in Strasbourg.
	We are aware of seven outstanding section 42 cases before a fair employment tribunal, five of which we believe are being handled by the devolved Administration in Northern Ireland.

Police Service Recruitment

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the cost was of the first and second recruitment competitions for the PSNI; and how many recruits were taken on.

Jane Kennedy: The recruitment agent is contracted to run two recruitment competitions, with the costs spread across both competitions. It is not therefore possible to quantify the costs as appointments are still being made from the qualifying pool in competition one, and the section process for competition two is not expected to be completed before the end of April. Around 300 recruits from the first competition will be appointed on a 50:50 basis.

Heads of State (Visits)

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland who decides whether a visit by a foreign head of state to Northern Ireland is categorised as (a) official, (b) private and (c) working; and what criteria are applied in each case.

John Reid: When a visiting head of state is invited by Her Majesty's Government, the visit is described as a guest of Government or official visit. Working or private visits take place on the initiative of the visitor or at the invitation of third parties.

Industrial Action

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many days have been lost owing to industrial action by staff in his Department, agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each of the last four years.

John Reid: None.

Union Duties

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many staff in his Department, agencies and non-departmental public bodies receive paid leave to undertake union duties; how many days they are allocated; and what has been the cost to public funds in each of the last four years.

John Reid: The figures are as follows:
	For Civil Servants
	In 1998, 19 staff received paid leave to undertake union duties. The total days taken were 56 at a cost of £2,511.
	In 1999, 14 staff received paid leave to undertake union duties. The total days taken were 56 at a cost of £2,348.
	In 2000, nine staff received paid leave to undertake union duties. The total days taken were 49 at a cost of £2,036.
	In 2001, 11 staff received paid leave to undertake union duties. The total days taken were 43 at a cost of £1,960.
	Local paid absence from work is granted where the duties are of a limited extent (normally for absences of up to half a day). Paid special leave may also be granted within the limit for each leave year of 15 days.
	For Prison Officers
	The Prison Officers Association has 31 staff who receive paid leave for union duties, and a full-time area chairman. The Prison Governors Association has six staff who receive paid leave for union duties.
	In 1998, staff spent a total of 7,391.30 hours on union duties at a cost of £120,478.
	In 1999, staff spent a total of 7,863.00 hours on union duties at a cost of £131,390.
	In 2000, staff spent a total of 7,066.30 hours on union duties at a cost of £122,247.
	Figures are not yet available for 2001.
	The annual facility time entitlement for the Prison Officers Association, excluding the area chairman, is 572 days. In addition, other accredited representatives are afforded time off (no set figure) for trade union activities to meet local requirements.
	The annual facility time entitlement for the Prison Officers Association is 44 days.

Departmental Secondments

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many staff in his Department have been seconded to jobs in the (a) private and (b) public sector in each of the last four years.

John Reid: The number of staff who have been seconded to the private and public sector in the last four years is as follows:
	
		
			 Year Private sector Public sector Total 
		
		
			 1997–98 1 46 47 
			 1998–99 2 5 7 
			 1999–2000 5 6 11 
			 2000–01 3 4 7

Lisnevin Juvenile Justice Centre

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what arrangements have been made to ensure the closure of Lisnevin juvenile justice centre by autumn 2002; and what subsequent use will be made of the building.

Des Browne: The project is being advanced in two phases. Phase 1, an interim measure until the purpose- built centre is constructed and successfully commissioned, involves upgrading security and refurbishing the accommodation on the existing Rathgael site and transferring the boys currently in Lisnevin. Phase 2 will be the provision of the purpose-built juvenile justice centre. Phase 1 is currently under way and a building contractor has been appointed to complete the work by early autumn 2002. In tandem with the building work, the Juvenile Justice Board is addressing the operational and staffing issues associated with the development of a single centre. It is anticipated that the interim centre will be commissioned before the end of 2002. At that time, children will transfer from Lisnevin. Discussions are on-going at present between Criminal Justice Division, NIO and the Northern Ireland Prison Service addressing the short and medium term use of Lisnevin. At present, the Northern Ireland Prison Service has no long term plans for the building.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Winning the Generation Game

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will set out for each of the conclusions in section 6.4 of the Performance and Innovation Unit report, 'Winning the Generation Game', (a) what progress his Department has made and (b) what future plans his Department has for acting on them; and if he will set out against each of the conclusions the targets and deadlines that have been set.

Ian McCartney: holding answer 19 December 2001
	I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my hon. Friend the Minister for the Cabinet Office (Barbara Roche) on 19 December 2001, Official Report, column 335W.

Departmental Helplines

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many calls have been received by each telephone helpline administered by his Department in each month since May 2000.

Nick Brown: The information on the number of calls answered by each current helpline is set out in the tables.
	
		Telephone helplines—2000 (May to December)
		
			  May June July August September October November December 
		
		
			 Benefits Agency Chief Executive's helpline 0 0 0 0 182 287 329 292 
			 Employment Service Direct 208,291 255,045 242,992 213,441 273,842 228,299 223,030 161,457 
			 CSA National Enquiry Line and Client Helpline (NEL) 73,583 95,232 77,755 79,269 92,333 69,653 67,395 47,936 
			 National Benefit Fraud Hotline 21,674 18,212 17,440 20,289 15,851 13,980 15,243 9,073 
			 Disability Allowance Customer Care helpline 363,113 359,069 352,325 336,994 347,049 362,133 359,659 258,494 
			 Retirement Pensions Teleclaim Line 0 0 2,611 5,888 10,239 14,736 22,120 18,194 
			 Pensions Direct 79,142 74,873 69,703 70,798 69,885 76,988 100,998 81,511 
			 Customer Liaison Team(35) 7,955 9,436 11,208 9,253 10,283 12,754 10,561 8,964 
			 Minimum Income Guarantee (MIG) Claimline 0 0 0 65,269 49,162 44,864 78,170 24,347 
			 Retirement Pension Forecasting and Advice (RPFA) 29,206 27,351 25,841 27,018 30,104 26,818 28,298 15,989 
			 Public Enquiry Office 6,124 5,107 6,552 5,954 5,427 6,699 5,758 3,368 
			 Employer Direct 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Medical Benefit 3,578 4,238 4,304 4,373 3,954 3,805 3,332 2,090 
			 New Deal for Lone Parents 2,158 2,022 2,370 1,736 2,106 2,334 1,671 1,222 
			 BA Publicity Register 1,235 4,753 1,352 2,130 1,050 875 1,187 423 
			 Inherited SERPS Enquiry Line 1,708 1,279 777 3,008 2,223 2,807 3,218 911 
			 Winter Fuel Payment Orderline (WFP) 0 0 0 826 2,264 663 642 564 
			 Pensioner Guide Orderline 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Winter fuel payment Helpline 78,960 109,812 83,136 100,125 84,255 84,429 157,594 122,653 
			 Pensions Information line 4,414 3,198 3,279 3,560 3,712 5,121 4,682 4,636 
			 Child Benefit Enquiry line 164,238 187,530 191,635 195,484 189,830 186,836 180,218 135,993 
			 Benefit Enquiry Line (BEL) 93,584 115,008 92,595 105,683 95,307 91,634 117,619 60,888 
			 Client Help Line (CHL) 273,969 314,703 252,824 253,399 323,135 247,701 240,207 242,189 
		
	
	(35) Formerly Overseas Customer Service helpline
	
		Telephone helplines—2001 (January to June)
		
			  January February March April May June 
		
		
			 Benefits Agency Chief Executive's helpline 359 250 305 250 267 281 
			 Employment Service Direct 268,050 274,128 340,913 260,997 264,149 360,616 
			 CSA National Enquiry Line and Client Helpline (NEL) 53,379 51,641 63,187 42,394 43,279 54,482 
			 National Benefit Fraud Hotline 17,340 18,191 27,580 17,261 18,461 14,086 
			 Disability Allowance Customer Care helpline 369,324 333,297 361,665 312,256 335,885 331,229 
			 Retirement Pensions Teleclaim Line 30,603 28,861 31,398 41,000 48,500 43,500 
			 Pensions Direct 96,040 103,691 123,515 92,948 94,321 82,661 
			 Customer Liaison Team(36) 14,238 10,333 10,516 8,855 9,842 12,054 
			 Minimum Income Guarantee (MIG) Claimline 15,290 13,202 52,814 25,061 13,843 10,723 
			 Retirement Pension Forecasting and Advice (RPFA) 35,640 32,650 36,496 30,994 31,330 20,609 
			 Public Enquiry Office 6,017 4,741 5,130 5,248 2,727 3,708 
			 Employer Direct 0 0 0 18,183 59,907 108,707 
			 Medical Benefit 3,378 2,678 3,188 2,343 3,213 3,628 
			 New Deal for Lone Parents 2,160 2,284 12,167 6,831 2,565 2,348 
			 BA Publicity Register 1,338 1,729 1,149 1,226 1,454 1,588 
			 Inherited SERPS Enquiry Line 690 1,933 4,636 1,615 1,023 508 
			 Winter Fuel Payment Orderline (WFP) 228 194 71 0 0 0 
			 Pensioner Guide Orderline 0 771 6,470 1,496 1,832 1,186 
			 Winter fuel payment Helpline 143,162 78,820 73,487 30,317 19,313 13,857 
			 Pensions Information line 23,970 23,339 23,525 14,956 5,516 5,000 
			 Child Benefit Enquiry line 224,406 190,057 201,576 169,933 184,934 204,969 
			 Benefit Enquiry Line (BEL) 125,715 105,292 107,656 91,520 108,469 92,295 
			 Client Help Line (CHL) 247,059 248,327 337,343 223,630 223,366 277,883 
		
	
	(36) Formerly Overseas Customer Service helpline
	
		Telephone helplines—2001 (July to December)
		
			  July August September October November December 
		
		
			 Benefits Agency Chief Executive's helpline 283 287 310 395 407 342 
			 Employment Service Direct 326,002 388,892 322,932 338,596 422,070 197,595 
			 CSA National Enquiry Line and Client Helpline (NEL) 44,664 52,883 45,728 44,722 56,039 28,776 
			 National Benefit Fraud Hotline 13,360 14,503 25,001 21,363 19,535 9,738 
			 Disability Allowance Customer Care helpline 333,211 305,652 294,536 335,118 329,134 238,877 
			 Retirement Pensions Teleclaim Line 51,000 50,000 43,999 45,091 28,565 27,134 
			 Pensions Direct 84,145 84,337 78,755 88,502 106,923 73,849 
			 Customer Liaison Team(37) 15,145 11,597 16,361 13,512 13,958 11,169 
			 Minimum Income Guarantee (MIG) Claimline 7,906 7,509 7,638 10,003 16,583 8,572 
			 Retirement Pension Forecasting and Advice (RPFA) 30,378 30,923 27,323 32,946 29,366 15,448 
			 Public Enquiry Office 5,250 5,389 5,246 6,191 4,598 4,321 
			 Employer Direct 100,691 135,768 125,684 116,182 144,363 66,428 
			 Medical Benefit 3,888 4,225 3,988 4,365 3,741 2,457 
			 New Deal for Lone Parents 2,624 1,864 2,645 3,055 2,139 1,373 
			 BA Publicity Register 1,171 1,278 1,093 857 1,647 692 
			 Inherited SERPS Enquiry Line 432 10,980 10,044 3,166 3,385 1,861 
			 Winter Fuel Payment Orderline (WFP) 0 0 1,675 1,024 595 185 
			 Pensioner Guide Orderline 3,389 1,834 2,036 1,478 5,081 1,436 
			 Winter fuel payment Helpline 24,929 33,849 30,046 37,340 162,673 92,974 
			 Pensions Information line 8,061 9,684 13,420 7,410 4,543 3,010 
			 Child Benefit Enquiry line 222,978 223,995 225,073 262,668 214,731 158,633 
			 Benefit Enquiry Line (BEL) 86,139 91,250 90,612 116,650 92,632 61,519 
			 Client Help Line (CHL) 216,045 244,198 223,648 221,737 285,016 182,787 
		
	
	(37) Formerly Overseas Customer Service helpline

Ministerial Trips

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will list each of the overseas trips made by himself and other members of his ministerial team in each of the last four years specifying the purpose and cost of each trip.

Alistair Darling: I refer the hon. Member to the reply my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister gave him on 4 February 2002, Official Report, column 707W.

Pensions Service

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many staff will be employed by the new Pensions Service; how he plans to advertise the service; and if he will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: Departmental allocations for 2002–03 are being finalised but the current assumption is that there will be the order of 13,500 front line staff in the Pension Service next year. We will promote the Pension Service using a variety of different media targeted to the specific needs of individual audiences. Our plans include leaflets, individual letters, internet, interactive digital television, radio, as well as continuing our involvement with partner organisations who are crucial to the successful delivery of the Pension Service.

Pensioners

Mike Wood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioner households there are in England and Wales.

Ian McCartney: There are 6.7 million pensioner households in England and Wales.
	Notes:
	1. We have defined a pensioner household as any household containing a person of state pension age.
	2. Figures rounded to nearest 100,000.
	Source:
	2000–01 Family Resources Survey.

Bereavements Benefit

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many widowers are estimated to have failed to claim bereavement benefit as a result of the confusion over form BD8.

Malcolm Wicks: holding answer 5 February 2002
	The information requested is not available.

Winter Fuel Payments

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in (a) Lancashire, (b) the north-west of England, (c) Wales and (d) the UK have (i) received winter fuel allowance for the 2001–02 season and (ii) are deemed eligible for the winter fuel allowance and are yet to receive the payment for the season 2001–02.

Ian McCartney: Figures for the number of payments made this winter are not yet available and information will not be available in the format requested. Last year's figures are shown in the table and we expect that the number this year will be similar.
	
		Number of people receiving a winter fuel payment in Lancashire, the north-west of England, Wales and GB in 2000–01 -- Thousand
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 Lancashire 223.6 
			 North-west England 1,336.0 
			 Wales 614.0 
			 GB 11,123.5 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 100.
	2. Figures exclude Northern Ireland cases.
	Source:
	Matching Intelligence Data Analysis Service Winter Fuels Payment 2000–01 exercise.

Winter Fuel Payments

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many instances in the last five years his Department has recorded of overpayment of winter fuel payments.

Ian McCartney: The amount paid to individuals depends on their household circumstances. Provisions in regulations allow for the automatic payment of a Winter Fuel Payment based on records held by the Department. If departmental records need updating, or the customer has failed to report a change in circumstances affecting the payment, the Department can accept the return of the payment. However, we do not collect centrally the reasons for the return.

Winter Fuel Payments

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment his Department has made of the impact of overpayment of winter fuel payments to some households on other eligible households awaiting payment.

Ian McCartney: In order to receive a Winter Fuel Payment, certain conditions have to be met. Payment is, therefore, based on the individual's entitlement rather than the circumstances of other, non-related, households.

Entertainment Costs

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will list for 1997–98 and for each subsequent financial year, including the current year to date, the amount spent by (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) its non-departmental public bodies on (i) food and (ii) alcohol, indicating how much was spent on guests, and how much in respect of (A) Ministers and (B) staff, broken down to show how much was provided directly by his Department and how much reclaimed.

Ian McCartney: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Public Bodies (Contracts)

Eric Forth: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will list the appointments made by his Department since 1 May 1997 of chairmen of (a) non- departmental public bodies, (b) commissions, (c) inquiries, (d) agencies and (e) task forces; and if he will list their (i) term of office, (ii) salary and (iii) known political affiliation (A) past and (B) present.

Ian McCartney: The information requested is as follows. It excludes past and present political affiliation which is not collected.
	
		£ 
		
			  Chairmen  
			 Bodies Name Term of office Salary 
		
		
			  (a) Non-departmental public bodies 
			 ACDET—Advisory Committee for Disabled People in Employment and Training Sue Maynard-Campbell July 1999 to March 2000 Nil 
			 DLAAB—Disability Living Allowance Advisory Board Rodney Grahame April 1993 to April 2003. Re-appointed: April 1995, April 2000 (38)280 
			 IIAC—Industrial Injuries Advisory Council Anthony Newman Taylor July 1996 to July 2002. Re-appointed: July 1999 (38)227 
			 OPRA—Occupational Pensions Regulatory Authority John Hayes CBE April 1996 to March 2001 (39)95,672 
			  Harriet Maunsell OBE April 2001 to March 2006 (39)53,000 
			 PCB—Pensions Compensation Board Dr. Julian Farrand August 1996 to August 2001 (39)8,824 
			  Sir Bryan Carsberg September 2001 to August 2004 (38)343 
			 PO—Pensions Ombudsman Dr. Julian Farrand August 1996 to August 2001 (39)89,216 
			  David Laverick September 2001 to August 2004 (39)100,000 
			 Remploy Ltd. David Heywood CBE September 1993 to September 1999 14,250 
			  Alan Pedder January 2001 to January 2003 (39)72,500 
			 SSAC—Social Security Advisory Committee Thomas Boyd-Carpenter August 1995 to August 2001. Re-appointed: August 1998 (38)277 
			 
			 (b) Commissions
			 DRC—Disability Rights Commission Bert Massie, CBE January 2000 to March 2004 (39)69,528 
			 
			 (c) Inquiries
			 Hosker Inquiry Sir Gerald Hosker February 2001 to May 2001 39,307 
			 
			 (d) Agencies
			 The Appeals Service TAS (previously the Independent Tribunal Service—ITS) Judge Michael Harris October 1999 to September 2002 (39)107,346 
		
	
	(38) Per day
	(39) Annually
	(e) Information on the number, remit, and membership of task forces, ad hoc advisory groups and reviews has been published by the Cabinet Office on a regular basis. The first report was published on 11 January 2000 and gives information for the period between 1 May 1997 to 31 October 1999. A second report was published on 27 July 2000 and covered the period 1 November 1999 to 30 April 2000. A third report was published on 13 December 2000 covering the period 1 May 2000 to 31 October 2000. The most recent report, "Task Forces, Ad Hoc Advisory Groups and Reviews", was issued in October 2001 and covers the period of the financial year 2000–01. Copies of these reports have been placed in the Libraries of the House.

Mobile Telephones

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will list, for 1997–98 and for each subsequent financial year, the amount spent (a) in the United Kingdom and (b) abroad by (i) his Department, (ii) its agencies and (iii) its non-departmental public bodies on (1) providing mobile telephone equipment, including handsets and other associated equipment, (2) for telephone calls made using such equipment and (3) telephone calls made using privately owned mobile telephones but subsequently reclaimed by (x) Ministers and (y) staff.

Ian McCartney: Information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is as follows.
	
		Mobile telephone running costs for DWP (formerly DSS) -- £000
		
			 Year Departmental total 
		
		
			 1997–98 1,330 
			 1998–99 1,213 
			 1999–2000 1,447 
			 2000–01 1,344 
			 2001–02(40) 1,423 
		
	
	(40) To date

Benefits

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on GP compliance with the appeals system for benefit reduction.

Nick Brown: General Practitioners (GPs) play an important role in providing factual information to this Department about patients who have claimed a state incapacity or disability benefit. Where necessary, information is obtained by the Department to ensure that initial decisions on benefit entitlement are based on appropriate medical evidence. In relation to state incapacity benefits NHS GPs are required to provide information to a DWP medical officer where they have issued a medical statement to the patient. GPs are not required as part of the NHS terms of service to provide their patients with medical evidence to support an appeal against benefit disallowance.

Benefits

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many recipients of benefits there were by region as (a) a percentage of population and (b) a total number, in descending order according to percentage figures in 2000.

Malcolm Wicks: holding answer 30 January 2002
	The available information is in the table.
	
		Recipients of key benefits(41) by Government office region— May 2000
		
			   Benefit recipients(42) Percentage of the population 
		
		
			 England (North East) 820 32 
			 Wales 920 31 
			 England (North West) 2,030 29 
			 Scotland 1,510 29 
			 England (Yorks and Humber) 1,400 28 
			 England (South West) 1,370 28 
			 England (West Midlands) 1,450 27 
			 England (East Midlands) 1,100 26 
			 England (Eastern) 1,340 24 
			 England (London) 1,760 24 
			 England (South East) 1,910 24 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Key benefits are jobseeker's allowance, retirement pension, incapacity benefit, housing benefit, council tax benefit, severe disablement allowance, disability living allowance (DLA), minimum income guarantee and income support.
	2. Figures are expressed as thousands and rounded to the nearest ten thousand.
	3. Although a person can receive one or more of these benefits, double counting is eradicated. However, it is possible that some under-16's receiving DLA may live in the same family as an adult receiving a key benefit.
	4. Figures exclude cases where people receive national insurance credits only.
	Source:
	Client Group Analysis of DWP Information Centre 5 per cent. statistical samples—May 2000, Extract of Disability Living Allowance Computer System, Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit Management Information System Annual 1 per cent. sample taken in May 2000. Population figures are provided by Office of National Statistics.

Lost/Stolen Property

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will list those items valued at less than £50 each which have been stolen or lost from his Department in each of the last four years.

Ian McCartney: Under Government Accounting, Management of Assets, Departments are required to record assets above the capitalisation threshold limit (currently set at £2,000) for the purpose of their accounts. In addition, they are required to maintain records of "attractive" items (eg those vulnerable to theft) whose value falls below the agreed capitalisation threshold. Guidance within the Department for Work and Pensions outlines the requirement for offices to list and control such items. However, items of nugatory value, for example stationery, are numerous and time consuming to record. Therefore, the Department does not have records for all the items that may be lost/stolen within this category.
	
		Recorded thefts under £50 in DWP and the former DSS in last four years: 1998–2001
		
			 Year/category Quantity 
		
		
			 1998  
			 Computer mouse 5 
			 Telephone 8 
			 Computer memory 1 
			 Scanner 1 
			 Tape 1 
			 Memory chip 1 
			 Floppy disks 99 
			 Disk drive 1 
			 Keyboard 5 
			   
			 1999  
			 Computer mouse 7 
			 Keyboard 1 
			 Pair of speakers 1 
			 Microphone 1 
			   
			 2000  
			 Computer mouse 2 
			 Computer keyboard 1 
			 Cat B 1 
			 Wallet and business cash card 1 
			   
			 2001  
			 Computer mouse 3 
			 Keyboard 2 
			 Floppy disks 2

Tomorrow Project

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what is the (a) remit and (b) estimated cost of the report his Department has commissioned from the Tomorrow Project; and what plans he has to publish it.

Ian McCartney: The Department has not commissioned a report from the Tomorrow Project. The project is an independent organisation proposing to examine the future of retirement in the UK. In recognition of our interest in this wide ranging review we will make a small financial contribution to the Tomorrow Project, subject to funds from other sources becoming available. Findings from the review will be published by the project, not by the Department.

Minimum Income Guarantee

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners qualify for the minimum income guarantee; and how many are in receipt of it.

Ian McCartney: As at August 2001 there were 1,736,200 pensioners claiming the minimum income guarantee (MIG). Figures for the number of pensioners who may be entitled to but who have not claimed the MIG are contained in the publication "Take Up of Income Related Benefits: Statistics for 1999/00".

Minimum Income Guarantee

George Stevenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners claim the minimum income guarantee in each parliamentary constituency in Stoke-on-Trent.

Ian McCartney: The information requested is in the table:
	
		Income support MIG claimants by parliamentary constituencies in Stoke-on-Trent, as at August 2001 -- Thousand
		
			 Parliamentary constituency Number of claimants 
		
		
			 Stoke-on-Trent, Central 2.8 
			 Stoke-on-Trent, North 3.1 
			 Stoke-on-Trent, South 3.4

Benefit Take-up

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what benefit take-up campaigns have been launched since 1997; and what the cost was of each.

Nick Brown: The MIG take-up campaign was launched in spring 2000. It has resulted in 127,000 extra MIG claims in addition to the 1.7 million pensioner households already receiving MIG. These newly eligible pensioners are on average an extra £20 per week better off. The advertising and media costs of the campaign have amounted to £4.015 million.

Pensions

David Lepper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the pension situation of people with periods of residence in Australia started during the currency of the social security agreement between Australia and the UK who retire permanently in the UK; and when he expects to introduce primary legislation in relation to this group.

Ian McCartney: Arrangements are in place to protect the pension position of those people with periods of residence in Australia who retire permanently in the United Kingdom. Such periods of residence before 6 April 2001 can be converted, if necessary, to qualifying years to enhance the basic retirement pension of these people. We shall be looking to legislate at an early opportunity.

Pensions

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will estimate the (a) number and (b) proportion of widows in each region and nation who are in receipt of occupational pension payments.

Ian McCartney: The information is in the table.
	
		
			 Government office region (a) Number of widows and widowers (b) Percentage in receipt of occupational pension payment 
		
		
			 North East 217,000 50 
			 North West and Merseyside 413,000 53 
			 York and Humberside 309,000 55 
			 East Midlands 259,000 49 
			 West Midlands 302,000 49 
			 Eastern 289,000 56 
			 London 376,000 50 
			 South East 379,000 59 
			 South West 263,000 51 
			 Wales 219,000 52 
			 Scotland 357,000 53 
			 England 2,807,000 53 
			 Great Britain 3,383,000 53 
		
	
	Source:
	Family Resources Survey 2000–01

Child Poverty

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what progress has been made towards achieving the Government's objective of halving child poverty by 2010.

Malcolm Wicks: Details of the progress being made can be found in our third annual report on poverty and social exclusion, Opportunity for all—making progress (CM 5260), which was published on 19 September 2001.

Hospital Stays (Pensions and Benefits)

John Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement regarding loss of entitlement to pension and other benefits of the elderly who are hospitalised.

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the impact of the downrating of pensions and benefits during hospital stays on the elderly and the sick.

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to revise the legislation reducing benefit payments to patients after six weeks residence in hospital.

Gwyn Prosser: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement regarding loss of entitlement to pensions and other benefits of elderly people during hospital stays.

Ian McCartney: holding answer 28 January 2002
	As previously promised we have considered carefully the impact of the current rules which reduce certain benefits paid to pensioners and people of working age after six weeks of hospitalisation. The downrating of benefits preserves the principle that the state should not make double provision. It also recognises that a substantial number of people leave hospital before six weeks.
	However, we also recognise that people have on-going financial commitments while in hospital, and although we consider the six week rule strikes a fair balance between what the state should provide financially and the provision individuals should make for themselves, we have none the less decided to extend the period before benefits are downrated by a further seven weeks to the 13 week stage. This will mean that people previously affected by the six week rule will be able to keep their benefits untouched if their period of stay in hospital is under 13 weeks.
	We will introduce this change to coincide with the introduction of Pension Credit.

Secondments

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many staff were seconded between (a) PWC Consulting and PricewaterhouseCoopers, (b) Ernst & Young, (c) Deloitte & Touche, (d) KPMG and (e) Andersen and his Department in (i) 1999–2000, (ii) 2000–01 and (iii) April 2001 to the latest date for which figures are available.

Ian McCartney: We have had no secondments between this Department (including Employment Service and the former Department of Social Security) and PWC Consulting and PriceWaterhouseCoopers, Ernst & Young, KPMG and Andersen for the periods listed.
	However, as part of the One Project to pilot welfare reform options for clients of working age, a number of staff from the Benefits Agency and Employment Service have been seconded into Deloitte Consulting, which is an operating arm of Deloitte & Touche. The numbers are set out in the table.
	
		Secondments to One pilots run by Deloitte Consulting
		
			   1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 
		
		
			 Benefits Agency 45 67 101 
			 Employment Service 84 69 64 
			  
			 Total 129 136 165

Theft and Fraud

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what additional security measures are planned by his Department to deter and detect theft and fraud.

Malcolm Wicks: The Department takes its responsibilities to protect its assets from theft and fraud very seriously and has put in place a wide range of security measures designed to deter and detect such events.
	We have appointed a senior accountable official to ensure that we have effective measures for deterring internal fraud and for investigating it vigorously if it should happen. A central probity team supports the senior accountable official and provides guidance and advice to managers and staff, security specialists and internal investigators. Our recruitment security measures fully meet Cabinet Office requirements.
	Staff have a policy statement setting out their personal responsibilities in combating internal fraud and theft, and detailed guidance outlining what to do if they suspect fraud. Later this year we shall be publishing a guide to security for all managers and a guide for staff emphasising their duties and responsibilities, and introducing security awareness induction training for all new staff. Our whistleblower's hotline allows staff to report, in confidence, any suspicions they may have about possible fraud or abuse by staff.
	Our management controls include mandatory checks and audit trails targeted at areas of high risk. As well as acting as a deterrent, these checks allow us to identify and tackle potential weaknesses in our systems. We have a network of security specialists to help managers identify risks and put in place counter measures, and teams of internal investigators to investigate cases of suspected internal fraud and theft when they arise.
	To emphasise to staff that we will not tolerate wrongdoing, we publish within the Department the outcomes of internal investigations. Penalties may include dismissal and prosecution for serious offences.
	We keep all of these measures under review to ensure they continue to support our vigorous approach to tackling fraud and theft.

Departmental Expenditure

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of the departmental expenditure limit in 2001–02 will be accounted for by salary costs and pension contributions.

Ian McCartney: Less than a third (31 per cent.).

IT Contracts

Richard Younger-Ross: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what has been the total expenditure of his Department on IT systems and support in each year from May 1997 to date; how many IT contracts have been let in each of those years; of the other main contracting party in each of those contracts, how many have been (a) companies whose registered office is in (i) England and Wales, (ii) Scotland and (iii) Northern Ireland and (b) foreign companies; and what are the names of the companies falling within category (a).

Ian McCartney: The Department of Social Security and the Employment Services both had made their own contractual arrangements for Information Technology (IT) prior to the formation of the Department for Work and Pensions.
	Department of Social Security
	The Department spent £1.6 billion on Information Technology (IT) between May 1997 and December 2001.
	The Department has let four contracts from May 1997 to date. These contracts were the ACCORD IS/IT contract let to three main parties, EDS (let 23 February 1999), ICL (let 25 February 1999) and BT plc (let 25 March 1999), all of whom have their registered offices in England and the SASA contract let in August 1997 to SEMA Group UK who also have their registered offices in England. Under the ACCORD contract there have been four specific businesses allocations awarded to date.
	Employment Service
	The Department spent £286 million on Information Technology (IT) between May 1997 and December 2001.
	On 1 August 1998 the Employment Services (ES) entered into a partnership agreement with EDS (Electronic Data Systems). The registered office for EDS is Stockley Park, England.
	ES entered into an IT contract with International Computers Ltd. (ICL) between 1 April 1997 and 30 September 2000. The ICL registered office is in England.
	On 3 February 1997 ES entered into a contract with Siemens Nixdorf Systems Ltd. The SNS registered office is in England.

Retirement Pension Payday

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many cases of retirement pension payday beginning on the Monday after the person's birthday there were in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: The information requested is in the table.
	
		Estimated number of newly retired pensioners whose pension payday began on the Monday after the person's birthday -- Thousand
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 1997–98 410 
			 1998–99 400 
			 1999–2000 400 
			 2000–01 410 
			 2001–02 400 
		
	
	Note:
	Numbers rounded to the nearest 10,000.
	Source:
	September PSCS data, 5 per cent. sample.

Retirement Pension Payday

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much money has been saved in each year since 1997 through starting retirement pension payday on the Monday after a person's birthday; and if he will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: There are no overall savings under the current regulations which provide for the payment of retirement pension in whole weeks at the start and end of a claim.
	If payment were made for part weeks at the start of a claim only, and there was no recovery of overpaid benefit at the end of a claim, we estimate that this would have incurred a cost of up to £20 million per annum in each year since 1997.

Compulsory Retirement

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  if he will make a statement on compulsory retirement of employees before the legal retirement age;
	(2)  what regulations exist to permit companies to enforce retirement on male employees at the age of 60 instead of 65.

Ian McCartney: There is no legal retirement age and there are no regulations covering retirement age. The employer sets the age of retirement from a company, often based on the state pension age. If the employer has an occupational pension scheme, the retirement age may be linked to the normal age at which the pension becomes payable.
	The Department encourages employers, through the Code of Practice on Age Diversity in Employment, and the Age Positive campaign, to adopt flexible approaches to retirement that benefit both them and their employees. Flexible retirement policies can bring business benefits to employers, and give individuals the opportunity to remain in work longer.

Departmental Overseas Visits

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many overseas visits have been undertaken by parliamentary private secretaries in his Department at departmental expense in each of the last four years; and at what cost to public funds.

Alistair Darling: Parliamentary private secretaries supporting Ministers in this Department have not travelled overseas on Government business on any occasion within the last two years. Information requested for the two preceding years is not available.

TRANSPORT, LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND THE REGIONS

Public Sector Transport Activities

John Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how much private finance has been raised for public sector transport activities in the last month; and how much he plans to raise by the end of this financial year.

John Spellar: holding answer 23 October 2001
	In 2001–02 to date, we have signed an £85 million contract for the Highways Agency's traffic control centre project. Public-private partnership contracts for transport signed since May 1997 will deliver new capital investment in excess of £1,180 million. In addition, the National Air Traffic Services PPP, signed last year, is expected to deliver £800 million of new investment over the next 10 years. London Underground's Tube Modernisation Plans, the contracts for which are expected to be signed shortly, will deliver £13 billion of investment over 15 years.

Railtrack

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions whether Mr. Iain Coucher is (a) drawing a salary and (b) receiving another form of payment for working on the establishment of a company limited by guarantee to bid for Railtrack.

David Jamieson: The services of Iain Coucher are obtained through a contract with the Strategic Rail Authority and Coucher Pender Ltd.

Railtrack

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions on what basis Mr. Iain McAllister is employed to develop a company limited by guarantee to bid for Railtrack.

David Jamieson: Iain McAllister has been appointed to give strategic direction to the CLG team. He continues to be employed by Ford Motor Company Ltd., who have agreed his availability for this part-time role.

Railtrack

John Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if the Government have received a request to guarantee or underwrite the finances of the proposed company limited by guarantee for Railtrack.

John Spellar: Discussions between Government and potential bidders for Railtrack are commercially confidential.

Railtrack

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions whether his Department has a right of veto over the recommendations of an interim review by the Rail Regulator into the financial requirements for Railtrack in administration for Control Period 2.

David Jamieson: No.

Railtrack

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will hold an inquiry into the dealings between Railtrack and Newt International of Portsmouth; what (a) working relationship and (b) outstanding contracts there are between Railtrack and Newt International; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I have given today [Ref: 35005].

Railtrack

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what contingency plans he has made for the provision of extra funding to the Railtrack administrator if the administration period is not over by the end of September.

David Jamieson: We keep the progress of administration under close scrutiny.

Railtrack

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions when the total amount of the application for state aid consent from the European Commission for Railtrack was communicated to the Financial Times.

David Jamieson: The Financial Times has not been briefed by my Department on this matter.

Railtrack

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will make a statement on the allocation of the projected funding requirement by the Railtrack administrator by the end of September.

David Jamieson: This is a matter for the administrator.

Railtrack

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what his latest estimate is of the public sector (a) direct and (b) indirect financial support expected to be required by Railtrack in administration.

John Spellar: Railtrack will continue to receive income from grant and other sources as set out in the regulator's October 2000 periodic review and in the 2 April 2001 agreement between Government and Railtrack.

Railtrack

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 8 February 2002, Official Report, column 1188W, on Railtrack, if he will provide examples of failure for each of the key areas of failure listed; what lessons have been learned from each of the key areas of failure listed; and what assessment of those examples of companies limited by guarantee listed has been conducted by his Department.

David Jamieson: The failures are well known and well documented. Examples are set out in the report of the Select Committee on Environment, Transport and Regional Affairs, entitled "Rail Investment: renewal, maintenance and development of the national rail network" (Sixth Report of Session 2000–01, 29 March 2001) and in the Transport, Local Government and the Regions Select Committee report on "Passenger Rail Franchising and the Future of Railway infrastructure" (First Report of Session 2001–02, Vol 1, 31 January 2002).
	It will be for potential bidders to set out their proposals for addressing them in the light of the guidelines issued by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State on 31 October 2001.

Railtrack

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions which (a) train operating companies and (b) trade union bodies are to be represented on the board of the proposed company limited by guarantee that seeks to be Railtrack's successor.

John Spellar: It is for the team developing a bid based on the concept of a company limited by guarantee to make a proposal to the administrator, including proposals on the membership of the proposed company.

Railtrack

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  how much the Government have invested through (a) Railtrack, (b) Ernst and Young and (c) other associated individuals and organisations since Railtrack was put into the hands of receivers; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  since Railtrack was put into the hands of receivers whether an upper limit (a) has been and (b) will be put on the amount the Government will invest in Railtrack.

David Jamieson: Railtrack plc is currently in railway administration, not receivership. During this period the Government have entered into a loan agreement with the administrator, copies of which were placed in the House Library on 17 October 2001, and through support set out in the October 2000 regulatory settlement and the 2 April 2001 agreement between Government and Railtrack.

Departmental Salary Costs

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what proportion of the departmental expenditure limit in 2001–02 will be accounted for by salary costs and pension contributions.

Alan Whitehead: The proportion of the departmental expenditure limit for 2001–02 that will be accounted for by salary costs and pension contributions will be 2.7 per cent.

Greenhithe Rail Station

Howard Stoate: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if his Department will make a financial contribution towards the cost of the planned reconstruction of Greenhithe rail station; and if he will make a statement.

John Spellar: We plan to make an announcement on this in the near future.

Financial Irregularities

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what recent financial irregularities in the Department have been brought to his attention in the last three months; for how long investigations have been conducted; what action has been taken in response; and what external auditors or other advisers will be appointed to investigate.

Alan Whitehead: I am aware of five investigations which have commenced in the last three months, all of which are on-going. All are being led by appropriately qualified staff in the Department, agency or non- departmental public body concerned. Where necessary, the in-house resource will be supplemented by expert advice.
	It is too soon to say what the outcomes will be. In each case the evidence will be weighed carefully and, where appropriate, further action, which may include reference to the police, will be initiated.

10-Year Transport Plan

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will provide an updated version of Table A3 from the 10-year transport plan of July 2000 that accounts for changes which have taken place between its publication and the present time.

David Jamieson: I have placed an updated version of Table A3 from "Transport 2010: The 10-Year Plan" in the House Library today.

10-Year Transport Plan

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions on what date his Department allocated £290 million of unused rail provision in 2000–01 to the 10-Year Transport Plan.

David Jamieson: The transfer of resources through end year flexibility arrangements were sought through the summer and winter supply supplementary procedures.

10-Year Transport Plan

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions for what reason rail provision budgeted for use in 2000–01 was not allocated to the 10-Year Transport Plan from the date of publication of the plan.

David Jamieson: The 10-Year Plan for Transport, published in July 2000, covers spending plans for the 10 years from 1 April 2001 to 31 March 2011. As such, rail expenditure in 2000–01 falls outside of the plan period.

10-Year Transport Plan

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if there was unused rail provision in 2000–01 in excess of the £290 million now allocated to the 10-Year Transport Plan.

David Jamieson: No. Unused rail provision in 2000–01 was less than the End Year Flexibility transfers to the rail budget in 2001–02.

London Underground

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions when he sent Transport for London (a) detailed risk registers and (b) London Underground Ltd.'s Business Plan in connection with the financial risk of the public private partnership of the London Underground; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: The provision of information by London Underground Ltd. to Transport for London is a matter for those two organisations.

London Underground

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 7 November 2001, Official Report, column 289W, on London Underground, if he will place the letters of comfort which have subsequently been issued in the Library; on what date they were issued; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State is considering issuing a comfort letter in relation to the tube modernisation contracts, but has not yet done so. Such a letter will only be issued after it has first been reported to Parliament.

London Underground

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions in the plans for modernising London Underground, how many stations the Government will ensure are wheelchair accessible; and what increase that is on the present figure.

David Jamieson: London Underground and the Government remain committed to improving accessibility of the underground and the modernisation plans will result in real improvements.
	I understand from London Underground that 29 of their stations currently provide full step-free access (a further seven stations with step-free access are served by London Underground trains but not owned by London Underground). In addition, 16 stations provide partial step-free access, usually to one platform only. Five stations will gain full step-free access this year. The modernisation contracts specifically require a further 13 stations, where designs are sufficiently developed, to be made step-free. The contracts also provide for London Underground to take forward further schemes as designs are developed. London Underground plans to develop a network of around 100 stations with step-free access by 2020. Once London Underground has transferred to Transport for London, decisions on priorities will be for the Mayor and TfL.

London Underground

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many broken down escalators there were on London Underground stations in each of the last 10 years.

John Spellar: This is an operational matter for London Underground who inform me that they track escalator performance through keeping records of the percentage of machines available for service. They believe that these figures give the best indication of service levels but, because they include the effects of planned works (overhauls and renewals) as well as faults, this means that in practice it would be virtually impossible to achieve 100 per cent. availability.
	The figures are as follows:
	
		London Underground escalator availability 1994–95 to 2000–01
		
			  Year Escalator availability (percentage) 
		
		
			 1994–95(41) 93.1 
			 1995–96 92.7 
			 1996–97 92.8 
			 1997–98 93.3 
			 1998–99 92.7 
			 1999–2000 92.0 
			 2000–01 91.4 
		
	
	(41) Data for years prior to 1994–95 could be provided only at disproportionate cost
	Escalator availability across the network fell in the last two years because cracks were detected in the top-shafts and steps of three types of escalator at various stages in 1999 and 2000. 52 escalators were affected by these faults, and all have now been repaired and are back in service. The completion of these works has had a notable impact on recent escalator performance—with performance comfortably above 93 per cent. since the beginning of 2001–02.

London Underground

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what estimate he has made of the (a) maintenance backlog at London Underground and (b) speed at which the maintenance backlog would be dealt with under a public-private partnership of the tube.

John Spellar: I understand that in 1997 London Underground estimated that there was a backlog of £1.2 billion. The Government have provided sufficient funding to prevent any worsening of the backlog and to enable renewal and replacement of essential assets. It is only possible to eliminate the backlog through a stable, long-term investment programme, which the 30 year modernisation plans are designed to provide. The plans will eliminate the maintenance backlog and deliver increased capacity, improved reliability and higher quality as quickly as is possible without excessive disruption to current services.

London Underground

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what the average number of trains in service was broken down by line on London Underground in each of the last 10 years.

John Spellar: This is an operational matter for London Underground, who inform me that information is not available in the form requested, because they measure service reliability by total train kilometres operated, rather than the number of trains in service.
	London Underground use this measure because the provision of a full schedule requires trains to enter and be withdrawn from service continuously and follow diverse journey patterns. Consequently, the number of trains operating on each line varies considerably by hour, as trains are put into or are withdrawn from service.

Rail Inspection

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  what assessment was made of the suitability of the U14 Ultra Sonic line inspection equipment used to inspect railway lines for gauge and corner cracking; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  on what basis the assessment by Railtrack representatives was made regarding Lizard rail inspection technology in a meeting with the Office of the Rail Regulator on 4 January; and if he will make a statement.
	(3)  what tests were conducted on the U14 Ultra Sonic line to ensure that it could detect flaws and cracks in rails; and if he will make a statement;
	(4)  how much of the rail network has been checked using the U14 Ultra Sonic line inspection equipment; when he expects the task to be completed; and if he will make a statement;
	(5)  who manufactures the U14 Ultra Sonic rail track inspection equipment; how many units are involved in inspecting the track within the equipment; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: These are operational matters for Railtrack plc in railway administration, which remains subject to regulation by the rail regulator in respect of its network stewardship and maintenance and renewal practices; and by the Health and Safety Executive in respect of health and safety.

Affordable Housing

David Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many units of affordable housing have been built through the exceptions site policy in each year since 1991.

Sally Keeble: Local authorities are asked to provide information on affordable housing delivered through the planning system as part of their annual Housing Investment Programme returns. On the basis of their responses, there were 466 affordable homes completed in 1999–2000 and 321 in 2000–01 on rural exception sites. In previous years this information was not collected centrally.

Affordable Housing

David Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how he intends to evaluate the results of the proposed local development frameworks and the action plans in the provision of sufficient affordable housing.

Sally Keeble: Planning policy guidance note 3: 'Housing', sets out guidance on monitoring, including the supply of affordable housing delivered through the planning system. Further advice is given in "Monitoring provision of affordable housing through the planning system: towards better practice". We propose no change in these arrangements.

Council Properties

David Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what the net change has been in each rural community with a population of less than 3,000 in England in the number of council-owned rented properties since 1991.

Sally Keeble: Stock data at 'settlement of population' level is only collected centrally in the Census, but initial results from the 2001 Census are being processed and are unlikely to be available until early spring next year.

Humber Bridge

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what has been the cost to his Department of the suspension of debt payments on the Humber Bridge since 1 April 1998.

David Jamieson: holding answer 8 February 2002
	Since 1 April 1998, the suspension of debt payments on the Humber Bridge has cost the Department interest on the debt of approximately £70.7 million.

Humber Bridge

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how much debt in respect of the Humber Bridge has been repaid to his Department in each of the last four years.

David Jamieson: holding answer 8 February 2002
	The Department has received the following capital repayments:
	
		
			  £ 
		
		
			 1998–99 5,000,000.00 
			 1999–2000 5,355,000.00 
			 2000–01 (42)0 
			 2001–02 (42)0 
		
	
	(42) Capital repayments between 2000 and 2002 have been waived so that essential maintenance work at the Humber Bridge can be undertaken.
	The Department has also received the following interest repayments:
	
		
			  £ 
		
		
			 1998–99 9,149,432.38 
			 1999–2000 9,614,432.38 
			 2000–01 8,782,894.88 
			 2001–02 (43)5,352,479.44 
		
	
	(43) The Department is due to receive a further £5,552,479.44 by 31 March 2002.

Rail Safety

Huw Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will list each occasion on which a vehicle has encroached on to a railway line causing disruption to rail services in the past three years.

David Jamieson: The information held by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) showing the number of incidents over the last three years where vehicles have encroached on to railway lines is contained in the table. The figures provided do not however include information on whether there was any consequent disruption to services, as this information is not provided to the HSE's Railway Inspectorate. A list giving details of individual incidents over the last three years has been placed in the House Library.
	
		Incidents of road vehicles obstructing the line not at a level crossing
		
			  1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 Total 
		
		
			 Motorist losing control of vehicle 13 10 11 34 
			 Loss of control from road over rail bridge 0 1 5 6 
			 Criminal intent/vandalism 15 12 11 38 
			 Other 5 5 4 14 
			  
			 Total 33 28 31 92

Closed-circuit Television

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what percentage of (a) underground station entrances, (b) railway station entrances and (c) bus stations in London have CCTV installed; what plans exist to extend CCTV coverage at such locations; when it is expected all such areas will have CCTV; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: I understand that 80 per cent. of London Underground station entrances, all entrances to London main line stations directly managed by Railtrack and all major bus stations owned by Transport for London (TfL) have CCTV installed.
	Stations that are the responsibility of train operating companies, and do not currently have CCTV, will generally have CCTV installed when they undergo refurbishment.
	Under PPP proposals all underground station entrances will be equipped with CCTV over eight years. TfL is currently considering how smaller off-highway bus parking facilities, some of which are used by passengers, can be installed with CCTV systems.

Local Government Finance

Mark Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if it is his policy that the revaluation of domestic properties for the purposes of council tax should be yield-neutral within each local authority.

Alan Whitehead: Revaluation will not affect the overall yield from council tax nationally, but yield in individual local authorities may go up or down. Central Government grant will take account of changes in authorities 'local tax base'.

Railway Industry

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what steps has he taken to prevent a conflict of interest between officials in (a) his Department and (b) the SRA working on the company limited by guarantee and decision making about the future of the industry in order to satisfy the requirements of the administrator.

David Jamieson: Steps have been taken to ensure appropriate demarcation between officials involved with policy relating to a CLG bid and those who will advise my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State on the appraisal of a transfer scheme put forward by the administrator. In addition, my Department has appointed an independent Compliance Officer to establish and administer ground rules for the flow of information between Government and the CLG team and other bidders. This is to ensure that the CLG bid is not unfairly advantaged and that commercially confidential information provided to Government by any bidder is handled correctly. The Compliance Officer will report directly to my right hon. Friend on this. The SRA is putting in place similar arrangements to ensure fairness between bidders.

Railway Industry

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions from what budget additional financial support to Railtrack and the administrator will be provided to cover costs from 15 April to 30 September.

David Jamieson: It is anticipated that the administrator will shortly repay the current loan facility provided by the Government and that by 15 April the finance required by him will come from commercial banking facilities. Railtrack plc will continue to receive income from grant and other sources as set out in the regulator's October 2000 periodic review and in the 2 April 2001 agreement between Government and Railtrack.

Congestion Charging

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  what his latest estimates are of the contributions that will be made to infrastructure investment under the 10-year plan by revenue from congestion charging schemes;
	(2)  if he will list the locations in which he expects congestion charging schemes to be in operation by 2010;
	(3)  how many congestion charging schemes he expects to be in operation by 2010.

Sally Keeble: The information can be found in Annexe 3 of Transport 2010: The 10-Year Plan.

Coal Wagons (Speed Limits)

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will make a statement on the reasons for different rail speed limits for coal wagons in England and Scotland.

David Jamieson: The maximum permitted speed for coal wagons on class one routes in both England and Scotland is 60 mph. On other routes the maximum permitted speed is 45 mph. Most coal wagons in Scotland do not operate on class one routes, which have higher maintenance standards than other routes.

E-Government

Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions when he will publish local authorities e-Government implementation reports; and if he will place these in the Library.

Alan Whitehead: I am making arrangements for copies of 'Implementing E-Government' statements to be placed in the House of Commons Library, and in my Department's own library. At the same time we will be asking local authorities to place their statements on their website, though many have done so already.

Trans-European Transport Networks

Richard Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what the Government's position is on Trans-European Transport Networks; and if he will make a statement.

John Spellar: On 3 October 2001, the European Commission adopted proposals to amend the guidelines which govern the development of the network. An explanatory memorandum (12597) on the proposals was submitted to Parliament on 2 November 2001. A public consultation exercise was mounted on 17 January and the closing date for responses is 28 February. The Government will determine their formal position on the Commission's proposals in the light of the comments they receive. On 3 January 2002 the Commission adopted a proposal to amend the regulation which lays down general rules for Community financing of the trans-European networks. An explanatory memorandum (15111) on that proposal was submitted to Parliament on 31 January. The memorandum makes clear that the Government support the development of the trans-European network but do not support the Commission's proposal to increase the maximum level of EU support for certain transport projects from 10 per cent. to 20 per cent. of total investment costs.

RMT Action

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many days have been lost to industrial action since 1 January 2002 as a result of action taken by the Rail, Maritime and Transport union.

John Spellar: There have been four days of industrial action on Arriva Trains Northern and six days on South West Trains by members of the RMT.

Union Duties

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many staff in his Department, agencies and non-departmental public bodies receive paid leave to undertake union duties; how many days they are allocated; and what has been the cost to public funds in each of the last four years.

Alan Whitehead: The number of staff who received paid leave to undertake union duties (excluding health and safety activity) in my Department and its agencies 1 in each of the last four years are set out as follows, the majority of whom are part-time representatives:
	
		
			   Number 
		
		
			 1998 277 
			 1999 267 
			 2000 263 
			 2001 270 
		
	
	The total number of days allocated to the staff above in each of the last four years are as follows:
	
		
			   Number 
		
		
			 1998 7,138 
			 1999 7,064 
			 2000 7,043 
			 2001 7,090 
		
	
	The costs of time spent on industrial relations and/or trade union activities, based on average salary costs, in each of the last four years are as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
		
		
			 1998 625,000 
			 1999 655,893 
			 2000 605,380 
			 2001 684,166 
		
	
	(44) The figures given do not include the Fire Services College who only became an executive agency within DTLR as a result of the Machinery of Government Changes in June 2001.

Publicity Expenditure

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what assessment he has made of the total real terms expenditure of his Department, its agencies and non-departmental public bodies on publicity in each of the years (a) 1997–98, (b) 1998–99, (c) 1999–2000, (d) 2000–01 and (e) 2001–02 (i) to date and (ii) as estimated for the whole of the present year; and if he will break these figures down to indicate expenditure on (A) advertising and (B) press and public relations.

Alan Whitehead: For details of how my Department assesses its campaigns, I refer the hon. Member to the reply by the Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, my hon. Friend the Member for Stretford and Urmston (Beverley Hughes), to the hon. Member for Hertsmere (Mr. Clappison) on 20 December 2000, Official Report, columns 168–69W.
	For details of expenditure on advertising over the years requested and our estimate for expenditure in the current financial year, I refer the hon. Member to the above reply and to my reply to the hon. Member for Isle of Wight (Mr. Turner) on 24 January 2002, Official Report, column 1037W.
	For details of expenditure on PR consultants in support of our campaigns, I refer the hon. Member to my previous reply to the hon. Member on 15 January 2002, Official Report, column 207W. Following the change of Department responsibilities after the last general election, figures for 1997–98 could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
	The details requested for DTLR's Agency and NDPB expenditure are not held centrally and could be supplied only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Website

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what the total cost of his Department's website was in real terms in each of the last four years; and how many hits it received in each of those years.

Alan Whitehead: The estimated cost of the main DTLR website (www.dtlr.gov.uk) in 2001–02 is £396,000. This covers the period from 8 June 2001 to 31 March 2002 and includes direct staff costs (e.g. salaries), development and HTML coding costs. Overhead costs, such as accommodation are not held centrally and can be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	Since the creation of DTLR, to 31 January 2002, this site has had approximately 22,700,000 page requests. The estimated total to 31 March 2002 is 28,700,000.
	Information, prior to 8 June 2001, relating to DTLR's ambit of responsibilities, is not available in a comparable format and could not be provided without incurring disproportionate cost.

Channel Tunnel (Freight)

Gwyneth Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions when he expects the full resumption of channel tunnel freight services to be announced; what discussions he has had with the French authorities on the resumption of channel tunnel freight services; and what compensation is available to British companies denied full access.

John Spellar: Early resumption of full services is dependent on the implementation of additional security measures—both physical and police resources—at the Calais Fréthun yard so that SNCF can effectively prevent disruptions to operation.
	My right hon. Friends the Prime Minister, the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions and the Home Secretary have all written to their French counterparts to ask that all necessary measures are put in place as soon as possible, to enable full rail freight services to resume. The Home Office and their French opposite numbers are working together closely to deal with the underlying immigration issues. I am keeping closely in touch with developments. The British Ambassador visited Calais on 31 January and discussed the problem with the Prefect.
	Compensation is a contractual matter between SNCF and its customers.

Health and Safety Laboratory

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what the cost of the PFI project to rationalise the estate of the Health and Safety Laboratory has been in each year since 1997.

Alan Whitehead: The resource accounting costs of external advisers to the project, as provided in HSL's published annual report and accounts, are:
	
		
			   £000 
		
		
			 1997–98 496 
			 1998–99 554 
			 1999–2000 732 
			 2000–01 890 
		
	
	Information for 2001–02 is not yet available.
	The internal staff costs of the Department and of HSE have not been separately maintained.

Health and Safety Laboratory

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what estimate he has made of the cost of the delay in taking forward the PFI project to rationalise the estate of the Health and Safety Laboratory.

Alan Whitehead: The work of the Health and Safety Laboratory (HSL) is varied and often unique. It has been important, therefore, to ensure that both the output specification for the laboratory has been carefully defined and that the preferred bidder's response has fully reflected the specialist nature of the requirement. This has taken some time to achieve. The costs associated with these activities have not been separately kept, nevertheless the overall scheme has been shown to be affordable to HSL and to represent best overall value for money both for the tax payer and for HSL. It is anticipated that negotiations will now be successfully concluded very shortly enabling construction work to begin, with anticipated completion in the late summer of 2004.

Rail Passenger Numbers

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Selly Oak (Lynne Jones) of 23 January 2002, Official Report, column 872W, on railways, what estimate he has made of the likely resource requirements generated by growth in passenger numbers when setting the level of annual resource spending.

David Jamieson: Revenue support to train operators is projected on the basis of a basecase growth scenario, as set out in the 10-year plan background analysis, plus anticipated additional growth through investment at a sectoral level. The actual levels of subsidy to or premiums from a passenger train operator are set through commercial franchise negotiations.

Rail Passenger Numbers

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what estimate he has made of the relationship between projected rail passenger growth in the 10-year plan and inter-urban fares if such fares rise by more than the retail prices index.

David Jamieson: The Strategic Rail Authority is carrying out a review of fares regulation, which will include an assessment of the relationship between fares levels and patronage.

Rail Passenger Numbers

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 12 February 2002, Question 32547, on future rail passenger demand, if he will place a copy of the spreadsheet reports and the report on future rail passenger demand for Eurostar in the Library.

David Jamieson: No. It is not normal practice to disclose such information under Section 13 of Part 2 of the code of practice on access to Government information.

Rail Passenger Numbers

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what proportion of the target increase in passengers on the railways over the next 10 years is accounted for by population increase in the south-east.

Stephen Byers: The modelling of passenger rail demand is detailed in the 10-year plan year background analysis document. Changes in population will be closely correlated with and will impact upon the principal factors driving future demand but this impact cannot be separately identified.

Rail Investment

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions for what reason the public sector capital investment in the railways falls on a year by year basis between 2005–06 and 2010–11.

David Jamieson: The fall in public investment in the railways in the latter years of the 10-year plan is primarily due to the completion of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link. Capital grants in respect of this project will greatly reduce when the link is completed in 2007.

Rail Investment

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will list the planned investment in the railways, at today's prices, over the next 10 years as at (a) 20 July 2000, (b) 14 January 2002, (c) 29 January 2002 and (d) 7 February 2002.

David Jamieson: The planned public sector revenue and investment funding to rail over the 10 years to 31 March 2011 at the particular dates was:
	(a) £29.1 billion, as set out in Table A.3 of the Ten Year Plan for Transport.
	(b) £33.5 billion, incorporating a £4.5 billion increase in public funding for rail since the 10-year plan. This total was included in the SRA Strategic Plan, and its profile is set out in the reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham, Selly Oak (Lynne Jones) on 23 January 2002, Official Report, columns 871–72W.
	(c) the same as (b)
	(d) the same as (b)
	The totals are given in cash prices. At each date the projected private sector investment in rail over the same 10 year period is £34.3 billion.

Car Traffic Growth

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what changes his Department has made to the projection for car traffic growth in the period covered by the 10-year plan; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: The 10-year plan was developed on the basis of a modelled forecast increase in all traffic in England between 2000 and 2010 of 17 per cent., compared to an increase of 22 per cent. without the plan ("Transport 2010: The Background Analysis", figure 13). The plan did not include separate figures for different vehicle types, but car traffic accounts for about 80 per cent. of vehicle kilometres travelled. No new traffic growth forecasts have been issued by the Department since the 10-year plan was published in July 2000.
	The current review of the plan is being informed by further modelling, using our national model that we have been revising over the past year. We intend to publish the review in the summer.

Rail Strategic Plan

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 4 February 2002, Official Report, column 730W, on what calculations the assumption about peak period growth in London was based; and on what basis his Department reached the assumption about inter-city growth detailed in the footnote.

David Jamieson: It reflects the Department's judgment, as set out on pages 8 to 10 of the background analysis, of the estimated basecase growth in rail passenger traffic by the particular sectors and on the current and expected capacity without the additional 10-year plan investments.

Rail Strategic Plan

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 8 February 2002, Official Report, column 1190, on the strategic rail plan, if he will list the projects to which contractual commitments have been made; and in what years the remaining £8.1 billion has been provisionally allocated.

David Jamieson: Contractual commitments for public investment support have been entered into for around £7 billion of network grants, £3.5 billion of capital grants to the CTRL and around £30 million of freight facilities grants. These commitments are included in the profile of public investment support set out in the reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham, Selly Oak (Lynne Jones) on 23 January 2002, Official Report, column 872W.

Port Charges

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what plans he has to reduce port charges in the UK; and if regional ports will receive subsidies to help alleviate port charges and increase their competitiveness.

David Jamieson: I have no plans to intervene in the commercial operations of harbour authorities, which charge users of harbours for the services that they provide. We believe that port operations should not in general need public subsidy.

Ministerial Boxes

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions by what means ministerial boxes are conveyed from private offices in his Department to his Ministers; how frequently and at what expense private courier firms are employed for such a task; and which courier firms have been used for such duties.

Alan Whitehead: Currently all ministerial boxes are carried by the Royal Mail. On one occasion (3 February 2002) a private company was used to transport the boxes of the Under-Secretary, my hon. Friend the Member for Northampton, North (Ms Keeble), boxes due to local difficulties due to the late opening of the Northampton office. The cost of this was £147.00 compared to £70.83 plus unspecified charges for bringing staff in to open the depot and collect the boxes. The courier firm used was Racer. Local difficulties have now been resolved and the Royal Mail are now again collecting the boxes.

Departmental Staffing

George Young: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what his staff complement dealing with walking and cycling policy in May 1997 was; and what the complement is now.

John Spellar: I have recently increased the complement of full-time posts wholly or mainly concerned with cycling and/or walking from 11 to 12. The number had been 11 since early 1999. Comparable figures for earlier years are not available.
	In addition I am at present inviting tenders for a three-year contract to promote the cycling strategy in the English regions. I expect the contractor to employ about 20 people on this task.

Departmental Staffing

George Young: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the complement in his cycling and walking division to be able to meet the demands to deliver the national cycling strategy target of raised cycling levels.

John Spellar: I keep all staff complements under regular review. My assessment is that the present complement for cycling and walking, together with the contract mentioned in my reply to the right hon. Member's previous question, is adequate for the task in hand.

Statutory Instruments

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will list the statutory instruments issued by his Department in the last 12 months, indicating (a) the purpose of each and (b) the cost of each to (i) public funds, (ii) businesses and (iii) individuals.

Alan Whitehead: My Department was responsible for making 216 general statutory instruments in the year 2001. A list identifying these has been placed in the Libraries of the House. Included on each instrument is an explanatory note which explains the purpose of the instrument in general terms and, where a regulatory impact assessment is appropriate, indicates from where a copy may be obtained. Copies of regulatory impact assessments are routinely made available in the Libraries of the House on publication of the relevant instrument.
	The remainder of the information is not held centrally in a form which would enable my Department to answer it without incurring disproportionate costs.

Disability Discrimination Act

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what responsibility (a) train operating companies and (b) Railtrack have for railway stations to be compliant with the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.

David Jamieson: Most railway stations are operated on a day to day basis by train operating companies who lease the stations from Railtrack. The largest stations are operated directly by Railtrack. In respect of the DDA the operator of the station is regarded as the service provider and they are responsible for ensuring compliance. Where Railtrack's role is solely that of landlord they are required not unreasonably to withhold consent to any proposed changes to meet DDA requirements.

Coastguard

Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many incidents were dealt with by each coastguard station in 2001.

David Jamieson: During 2001, HM Coastguard dealt with a total of 12,518 incidents. A breakdown for each coastguard station is given in the table.
	
		
			 Coastguard Stations Total incidents 
		
		
			 2001  
			 Aberdeen 851 
			 Belfast 331 
			 Brixham 828 
			 Clyde 653 
			 Dover 654 
			 Falmouth 805 
			 Forth 346 
			 Holyhead 653 
			 Humber 648 
			 Liverpool 751 
			 Milford Haven 462 
			 Portland 985 
			 Shetland 300 
			 Solent 1,405 
			 Stornoway 383 
			 Swansea 833 
			 Thames 595 
			 Tyne Tees(45) 394 
			 Yarmouth 641 
			 Total 12,518 
		
	
	(45) MRSC Tyne Tees was decommissioned from 29 September 2001 as part of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency's wider introduction of digital communications technology.

Road Safety (Mobile Phones)

Valerie Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what plans he has to raise public awareness about the dangers of using a hand held mobile phone while driving.

David Jamieson: The Highway Code makes it clear that drivers should never use hand-held mobile phones while driving and that it is best not to use hands-free phones. The Department will continue to educate drivers about the dangers of using a mobile phone while driving. Over 2 million copies of its advisory leaflet, "mobile phones & driving", have been issued to road safety officers, the police and others on request. A new campaign is planned for the spring.

Solway Harvester

Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how much has been paid by his Department for the salvage and subsequent storage of the fishing vessel, Solway Harvester, to (a) the Government of the Isle of Man and (b) other parties; and if he will list them.

David Jamieson: Following the salvage of the fishing vessel Solway Harvester the marine accident investigation branch has paid £124,136.77 to the Government of the Isle of Man. This payment was 50 per cent. of the costs incurred for the final raising of the wreck and subsequent work. No money has been paid to any other organisation.

Solway Harvester

Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will consider delaying releasing the marine accident investigation branch report into the Solway Harvester until the conclusion of the Isle of Man police investigation into the vessel's sinking.

David Jamieson: The chief inspector of marine accidents has received a letter from the Attorney General of the Isle of Man requesting he defer the publication of the marine accident investigation branch (MAIB) report into the loss of the Solway Harvester. The request has been made to enable the Attorney General to consider both the MAIB report and the Isle of Man report into the same accident. The chief inspector has acceded to this request.

Norwich Airport

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will make it his policy to permit Norwich city council to borrow to allow for airport expansion.

David Jamieson: Statutory control over Norwich airport's borrowing was removed in 1999. The airport company's ability to borrow now depends on its financial position rather than on central Government borrowing limits.

Rail Safety (Asylum Seekers)

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what action his Department is taking to ensure that rail safety is not compromised by asylum seekers entering the UK through the channel tunnel.

David Jamieson: The safety of the channel tunnel system is the responsibility of Eurotunnel, overseen by the Channel Tunnel Intergovernmental Commission with the advice and assistance of the Channel Tunnel Safety Authority. The Safety Authority regularly receives reports from Eurotunnel on the activity of asylum seekers, and makes reports to the Intergovernmental Commission on the changing situation and on Eurotunnel's preventive measures. It keeps the position under regular review.
	The safety authority remains satisfied that Eurotunnel has taken reasonably practicable measures to ensure the safety of the channel tunnel system, including the safety of passengers and crew.

Housing

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions whether he took into account new housing plans for the south-east in developing the 10-year plan; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: The analysis carried out for the 10-year plan included an allowance for regional differences in population growth, and thus in car traffic growth and resulting congestion. It did not address the detailed location of new housing.
	Decisions on allocation of resources to major projects will be based on detailed scheme or programme appraisals, which will reflect regional housing strategies.
	An improved model is now under development, and will be used in analysis to support the current review of the 10-year plan. This will allow better account to be taken of the predicted growth in the number of households in urban areas in the south east.

Vehicle Inspectorate

John Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many traffic examiners and vehicle examiners were employed by the Vehicle Inspectorate in each of the past 10 years.

David Jamieson: The numbers of traffic examiners and vehicle examiners employed by the Vehicle Inspectorate since 1991–92 are given in the table. The figures are calculated on the basis of the average number of staff in post over a full year.
	
		
			 Year Number of vehicle examiners Number of traffic examiners 
		
		
			 1991–92 261 160 
			 1992–93 263 171 
			 1993–94 247 166 
			 1994–95 229 163 
			 1995–96 241 164 
			 1996–97 243 165 
			 1997–98 248 166 
			 1998–99 252 169 
			 1999–2000 276 175 
			 2000–01 289 185

Road Safety

John Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions when the Government plans to implement the (a) primary and (b) secondary recommendations in the Health and Safety Executive's Work-Related Road Safety Task Group report entitled "Reducing at-Work Road Traffic Incidents (2001)".

David Jamieson: The Health and Safety Commission have been asked to consider the recommendations of the task group, and to report to Ministers in May 2002. We will need to consider that advice carefully before any decisions on implementation can be taken.

Road Safety

John Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how much his Department intends to spend in 2002–03 on (a) road safety publicity and (b) the forthcoming radio and television campaign on driver tiredness; and if he is planning to run the campaign at peak listening and viewing times.

David Jamieson: For the fiscal year 2002–03 £13.4 million has been allocated for the year round Think! road safety publicity campaign.
	The driver tiredness element of the Think! campaign which comprises television and radio advertising will be broadcast from March 27 to 7 April at appropriate times for the specific audience and message. This will cost approximately £720,000. The message will, however continue at suitable times throughout the year as part of the wider campaign. Over the year, the advertising will be supported by proactive public relations activities and publicity materials for use locally.

Road Safety

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will introduce similar obligations to those in Scotland on local highway authorities to take reasonable steps to prevent ice or snow making roads unsafe in winter.

John Spellar: We are continuing to consider the legal position on the winter service provided by local highway authorities in England. In the meantime we expect them to implement winter service provisions on their roads in accordance with the code of practice for maintenance management "Delivering Best Practice in Highway Maintenance" which was published on 10 July 2001.

Rail Capacity Study

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 11 January 2002, Official Report, column 1051W, on the rail capacity study, what was the conclusion of the first stage of the study commissioned by the Strategic Rail Authority to aid them in deciding their strategic priorities on rail capacity which reported in September 2001; when the study into the second stage is due to commence; and when that second stage study is due to be completed.

David Jamieson: The study identified a number of key locations where the rail network is currently or soon to become congested. The study is now assessing possible options to relieve congestion, or to provide additional capacity at key "pinch-points". The Strategic Rail Authority expects to have an assessment of the options after Easter.

Central Railway

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will make a statement on Central Railway's application for a hybrid Bill; and what the Government's response has been.

David Jamieson: The Government are considering carefully Central Railway's proposals for a hybrid Bill. We will take a view on the issues raised by the proposals and respond to Central Railway and to Parliament in due course.

Railways (Scotland)

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  what the planned expenditure is by the (a) Government and (b) private sector for the introduction of the new lines (i) Milngavie to Larkhall, (ii) Stirling to Alloa and (iii) Edinburgh Crossrail, announced in the recent SRA proposals;
	(2)  what the planned expenditure is by (a) Government and (b) the private sector for the additional capacity increase for the lines between Glasgow and Kilmarnock announced in the recent SRA proposals;
	(3)  what the planned expenditure is by the (a) Government and (b) private sector for the upgrading of the 140 smaller stations in Scotland, stated in the recent SRA proposals;
	(4)  what is the planned expenditure by (a) Government and (b) the private sector on the refurbishment of the 318 electric trains and the reliability improvements for the 170 diesel trains announced in the recent SRA proposals;
	(5)  what the planned expenditure is by the (a) Government and (b) private sector for the upgrading of Waverley station in Edinburgh, stated in the recent SRA proposals;
	(6)  what the planned expenditure is from (a) Government and (b) the private sector for the introduction of the six new stations and interchange improvements at Partick, Gourock and Markinch announced in the SRA proposals.

David Jamieson: The total public sector expenditure proposed by the Strategic Rail Authority's (SRA's) strategic plan is £33.5 billion. The SRA has not attempted to break this down on a regional or route basis.

Airport Rail Links

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what discussions are planned between the UK Government and (a) the Scottish Executive and (b) the Strategic Rail Authority to consider the introduction of airport links between Edinburgh and Glasgow airports and their respective cities.

David Jamieson: No such discussions are planned. This is primarily a matter for the Scottish Executive and the Strategic Rail Authority.

Airport Rail Links

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 28 January 2002, Official Report, column 54W, on airport rail links, what the time scale is for the receipt of information from the Scottish Enterprise, BAA and the SRA concerning the introduction of rail links between Edinburgh and Glasgow airports and their respective cities.

David Jamieson: The Scottish Executive, in association with BAA, Scottish Enterprise, the Strategic Rail Authority and the Government have commissioned Sinclair Knight Merz to undertake a detailed economic and engineering study into rail links to Glasgow and Edinburgh airports. The Scottish Executive is expecting to receive their report in the autumn.

Rail Expenditure

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what financial safeguards will be in place to prevent the Government spending more than the allotted £33.5 billion on the specific programmes mentioned in the recent Strategic Rail Authority report on unforeseen costs between now and the completion of any of the planned projects; and who would be liable for such extra unforeseen costs.

David Jamieson: The £33.5 billion of Government support to the railways over the 10 years to 31 March 2011 will be delivered through franchise and other contractual agreements that are subject to value for money considerations and, where applicable, appropriate risk transfer. Discussions on the transfer and management of risks, on a case-by-case basis, would influence the liability for any unforeseen costs.

Selby Rail Crash

Claire Ward: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions when the reports will be made available of the two working groups set up in response to the accident at Great Heck, near Selby, on 28 February 2001; and if he will make a statement.

John Spellar: The reports will be published today. Both reports emphasise how rare this accident was and responses to the risks of a similar accident must be measured. The reports of the two groups contain 19 separate recommendations. I have accepted all of them and, in one case, have asked the Highways Agency to adopt the recommended approach more widely and, in another, have asked for the recommended work to be expedited. I must stress how important it is that highway authorities and rail infrastructure providers work together to assess the sites on their networks where vehicles might get onto the rail network and to take what action, if any, they consider necessary to try to prevent this. I commend to them the risk assessment framework prepared by the CSS and Railtrack to prioritise any necessary work at local roads over rail bridges. This framework will be developed to cover other circumstances where vehicles might get onto the rail network.
	I accept the conclusion of the Highways Agency report that there are no serious shortcomings in the current standards for safety barriers but nevertheless commend their plans to convene a technical project board to take forward any necessary changes to barrier standards for national roads. I welcome the recommendation of the working group for a clearer and more open procedure for updating the standards relating to safety barriers and have asked the agency to adopt this more open approach for "all" standards.
	I have asked that the HSC's recommended timetable for the development of a protocol to apportion responsibility and costs of improvements made at locations where roads meet, cross or run close to railways should be expedited. This is so as not to delay the carrying out of any necessary work. I have, therefore, decided that the protocol should be developed for England by June 2002. I will review the working of this protocol, as recommended by the HSC, once action on the other recommendations is underway. The work necessary to implement the 19 recommendations of the two reports will be steered by my Department and I have asked for a report on progress by 25 July 2002.

Free Travel (Pensioners)

Candy Atherton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what the estimated cost is of free public transport nationally for all those of pensionable age.

Sally Keeble: We estimate the cost of providing free local travel to those over 60 years of age and disabled people would be in the region of £900 million per year. We have no estimate for pensioners separately.

Concessionary Travel (Pensioners)

Candy Atherton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what estimate has been made of the number of pensioners benefiting from concessionary bus fare schemes introduced in the last two years.

Sally Keeble: Since June 2001, local authorities have been required to offer a minimum of 50 per cent. reductions for all pensioners and disabled people on local bus services with a free bus pass to the benefit of 5.5 million pensioners in England and Wales.

Concessionary Travel (Pensioners)

Candy Atherton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what recent discussions he has had with local authorities regarding an extension of concessionary fares for pensioners using public transport.

Sally Keeble: My ministerial colleagues and my officials regularly meet with the local authority associations to discuss a wide range of transport-related issues, including concessionary travel.

Planning Green Paper

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what representations he has received from county councils on the Planning Green Paper.

Sally Keeble: A number of representations have been made either as formal responses to the Green Paper proposals; through letters from county councils to their Members of Parliament who have passed on the correspondence to Ministers; through meetings with Ministers; or from the preliminary views of the county councils network of the Local Government Association. All have drawn attention to the importance of the strategic planning role of the county councils. The consultation period on the Green Paper ends on 18 March.

Civil Servants

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what was the (a) percentage and number of rail journeys undertaken on first class tickets, (b) average cost of a first class journey by rail and (c) total cost of rail travel in each of the past four years broken down by grade of civil servant.

Alan Whitehead: The amounts spent by DTLR(C) are set out in the table. As much information as can be readily retrieved has been set out. Further detail, including a breakdown by grade of staff, is not available without incurring disproportionate cost.
	
		
			   1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 
		
		
			 (a) 
			 Percentage first class journeys n/a n/a 47 46 
			 Number of first class journeys n/a n/a 7,101 7,051 
			  
			 (b) 
			 Average cost of first class rail journey (£) n/a n/a 103 115 
			  
			 (c) 
			 Total cost of rail travel (£000) n/a 1,064 1,184 1,206

Civil Servants

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many new entrants to the civil service were employed in his Department in each of the last five years; and how many in each year were aged 50 years and over.

Alan Whitehead: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given today by my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary, Cabinet Office.

Town and Country Finance Issues Group

Virginia Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions on what basis the Minister for Local Government cancelled his meeting with the parliamentary co-chairman of the Town and Country Finance Issues Group on 13 February; and what plans he has to rearrange it.

Nick Raynsford: No such meeting was arranged. We will continue to work with local government on reforming the formula grant distribution. Ministers will be ready to meet with TACFIG and other special interest groups in due course as we develop our proposals for the new grant distribution system.

Local Councillors' Pay

David Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will publish figures for the average pay of (a) council leaders and (b) the cabinet members of local authorities which operate cabinet Government in England and Wales; and if he will make a statement.

Alan Whitehead: My Department does not collect information from councils on the allowances paid to council members.
	The average special responsibility allowances in those local authorities in England which made the information available to the Improvement and Development Agency, as of 4 December 2001, are as follows:
	Council leaders: £12,528
	Members of the council executive: £6,560.
	Source:
	www.idea-knowledge.gov.uk, Member Allowance Summary Survey.

Rail Budget

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  to what purpose the £290 million rail provision in 2000–01 now allocated to the 10-Year Transport Plan was originally allocated; and for what reason it was unused in 2000–01;
	(2)  how much unused rail provision in 2000–01 was carried forward to 2001–02 under the arrangements for end of year flexibility.

David Jamieson: The summer and winter supplementary supply estimates transferred a total of £284.993 million to the rail budget in 2001–02 through the End Year Flexibility arrangements. I refer the hon. Member to the Supplementary Supply Estimates for a detailed analysis of the transfers.

NATS

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what expenditure the Government have made on the NATS PPP; on what dates; for what purpose; and what further expenditure is planned.

David Jamieson: Since October 1998, the Government have so far incurred costs of £52.2 million in the setting up of the NATS PPP. It is estimated that remaining residual costs amount to £3.5 million.

NATS

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what payments have been made to the NATS employee Share Trust Ltd. to date; and when they will be completed.

David Jamieson: The allocation of the first tranche of shares to staff was completed on 21 September 2001. The second allocation, which has been triggered by the successful introduction into service of the Swanwick Centre, will proceed once a further valuation of the shares has been completed and Inland Revenue approval obtained.

NATS

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions when the Government received the NATS business plan.

David Jamieson: A draft of the NATS business plan was received at the end of last November.

NATS

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what representations he has had concerning the NATS price cap since 11 September 2001.

David Jamieson: The price cap for en route air navigation services provided by NATS is a matter for the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). I understand that NATS applied to the CAA on 4 February seeking a relaxation of the price cap over the period 2003–05.

NATS

Stephen Pound: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what the consequences for National Air Traffic Services arising from the terrorist acts of 11 September 2001 have been; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Byers: The terrorist attacks in the United States on 11 September led to a downturn in air traffic which has had a serious impact on NATS' revenues. Since that time, NATS' financial position has been regularly discussed by NATS, the Airline Group, the Government as the other main shareholder, the Civil Aviation Authority as regulator and the banks. All these parties are making a contribution to ensuring that NATS has a robust financial structure for the foreseeable future.
	The banks and Government are being asked to make a contribution through the provision of short-term financial support, likely to be in the form of commercial loans. The terms of the Airline Group's contribution are being discussed. This needs to be settled before the terms of the loan are finalised.
	I will report the outcome of those discussions to the House.
	Without the PPP, the Government would have borne the full shareholder and financing risk of the downturn in revenue.

Swanwick

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what representations he has received regarding the operability of the Sony air traffic control screens at the new en route centre at Swanwick; how many employees have expressed difficulties in reading these screens; what steps he has taken to ensure that these screens are not compromising air navigational safety; and if health and safety concerns expressed by staff are being addressed.

David Jamieson: Just prior to the opening of the Swanwick centre on 27 January, a few air traffic control officers (ATCOs) expressed concern about the legibility of the screens which they would be using. I understand one ATCO wrote to the NATS Board on the subject and as a result, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) was asked to make an inspection.
	The findings were presented to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), who as the independent aviation safety regulator had to take a view on the air safety implications. On 22 January the CAA gave National Air Traffic Services (NATS) its full and final approval to take Swanwick into operation.

Prestwick

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what stage discussions on building the new scottish centre for air traffic at Prestwick have reached; and when he expects this centre to be built.

David Jamieson: Site preparations continue, as does the evaluation of systems. The Centre is now expected to be completed during 2008 or 2009.

Braunstone Community Association

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what the aims are of the Braunstone Community Association, Leicestershire New Deal regeneration project; what the estimated cost is; for what period it will run; for what reason his Department has sent in departmental auditors; how long the investigation will take; and when the result will be published.

Sally Keeble: The New Deal for Communities (NDC) programme addresses local regeneration needs by putting residents at the heart of processes to develop community led solutions. In 1998 Braunstone in Leicester was one of 17 areas selected to be a round 1 NDC pathfinder. Braunstone is the most deprived ward in the East Midlands on the National Index of Local Deprivation.
	The Braunstone Community Association (BCA) was formed as a company limited by guarantee to deliver the NDC programme. A majority of the BCA Board is made up of residents who have been elected through a democratic process. Following community consultation, the BCA produced a Braunstone NDC delivery plan, which identified key issues affecting Braunstone. The delivery plan sets out a vision centred around the five cornerstones of regeneration: work, crime, health, education and the physical environment. On the strength of the delivery plan, the BCA was allocated NDC funding of up to £49.5 million for the regeneration of Braunstone over at least seven years.
	The Braunstone NDC programme is now in its second year of project delivery. It has already implemented a range of projects and initiatives to begin to tackle some of the key issues affecting Braunstone, with further projects under development. Over half of the people employed by the BCA in delivering the NDC Programme are local residents.
	In November 2001 the BCA Board established an Independent Investigation Panel to examine various stories appearing in the local press that related to its internal relationships. The BCA Board considered the report of investigation panel at its meetings on 20 December 2001 and 7 January 2002. As a result, the BCA has adopted various resolutions to improve processes and partnership working.
	In view of the nature of some of the unsubstantiated allegations the Government Office for the East Midlands (GOEM) commissioned an audit of the Braunstone NDC Programme by a Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions (DTLR) audit team. The audit team expects to report to GOEM early in March. It is not customary to publish findings of internal audits.
	The audit findings, together with evidence arising from the findings of the independent investigation, will allow the Government Office to decide what further steps it needs to take in order to secure the future of the Braunstone NDC Programme.

Capital Receipts (Islington)

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what the total income from capital receipts of the London Borough of Islington was for each of the past three years from non-right to buy sales.

Sally Keeble: The available information reported by Islington LBC is as follows:
	
		Gross income from housing capital receipts -- £000
		
			  1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 
		
		
			 Sales of fixed assets 20,412 33,843 46,852 
			 of which:
			 Right to Buy sales(46) 12,522 n/a n/a 
			 Capital Repayments/leasing disposals 1,305 676 1,048 
			  
			 Total housing capital receipts 21,717 34,519 47,900 
		
	
	(46) DTLR P1(B) quarterly housing activity returns
	Source:
	DTLR Capital Outturn Return (COR) returns, except for
	(47) DTLR P1(B) quarterly housing activity returns

Local Authority Houses

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what information he has on the cost of promoting ballots of council tenants on stock transfer; and if he will state the cost for each English housing authority area of ballots during the past year.

Sally Keeble: The costs of housing transfer ballots are met by local authorities from their housing revenue accounts. The Department does not hold information on the amounts involved.

Galileo Satellite Navigation System

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what funds have been committed to the Galileo satellite navigation system; and what estimate he has made of the total final cost of the system to (a) public and (b) private funds.

David Jamieson: The Galileo satellite navigation programme is being carried out jointly by the European Union (EU) and the European Space Agency (ESA). They are each planning to contribute euro 550 million to the development and validation phase (2001–05). In April 2001 the Transport Council released euro 100 million of the EU contribution. A decision on whether to release the remaining euro 450 million may be taken at the Transport Council on 26 March. A declaration for subscriptions to ESA's share of the costs was opened at the ESA ministerial meeting held in November 2001. A majority of ESA member states subscribed but the UK indicated that it would await the outcome of the Transport Council's decision before finalising its contribution.
	Originally, the European Commission estimated that the capital costs of Galileo would be euro 3.25 billion (2001–08) with annual operational costs of euro 220 million from 2008. The public sector would provide euro 1.75 billion of the capital costs, the private sector the balance of euro 1.5 billion, and operational costs would be met from revenues.
	A recent study carried out by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) on behalf of the Commission has put the capital cost at euro 3.4 billion, with annual operating costs of euro 224 million over a 20-year concession period. PWC considered that the programme would require some continued public funding for deployment of the system and payments during operation. Total public sector funding was estimated at some euro 3.8 billion, depending on the private sector assessment of revenues and risks, and subject to the outcome of a competitive tendering process.

Rent Officers

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many appeals against the decision of rent officers covering the Greater London area there have been in each of the last three years.

Sally Keeble: The number of appeals against the decision of rent officers covering the Greater London area in each of the last three years was as follows:
	
		
			  Number of appeals  
			   Housing benefit cases Fair rent cases Total 
		
		
			 1998–99 2,970 2,583 5,553 
			 1999–2000 2,856 2,607 5,436 
			 2000–01 2,166 1,780 3,946

Rent Officers

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many people with an ethnic minority background serve as rent officers in the Greater London area.

Sally Keeble: The Rent Officer Service (TRS) currently employs 13 rent officers in Greater London who belong to an ethnic minority. In percentage terms this is 13 per cent. of the overall number of rent officers.

Train Speed Restrictions

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many train speed restrictions are in force in the UK rail network system.

David Jamieson: At the end of January 2002 there were 652 temporary speed restrictions on the network.

Empty Properties (Greater London)

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many properties have been empty for up to five years in each Greater London borough.

Sally Keeble: Information for the number of dwellings that have been vacant for five or more years is not available centrally.
	The number of all vacant local authority and Registered Social Landlords' dwellings in each local authority area in London on 1 April 2001 (the latest available data) are set out alongside the local authorities' estimates of 'Other private' and 'Other public' sector dwellings. Also included are the number of local authority dwellings that have been vacant for more than six months and the estimated number of 'Other private' sector dwellings vacant for more than six months.
	
		Number of vacant residential dwellings in London on 1 April 2001, by local authority and tenure
		
			   of which:of which:  
			 Local authority LA(48) vacant over six months(49) RSL(50) 'Other public' sector(48) 'Other private' sector(48) vacant over six months(48) Total vacant dwellings 
		
		
			 Barking and Dagenham 479 101 102 1 747 380 1,329 
			 Barnet 154 33 120 59 2,820 1,545 3,153 
			 Bexley 0 0 163 0 1,819 942 1,982 
			 Brent 146 65 380 244 4,734 2,757 5,504 
			 Bromley 0 0 448 0 3,870 2,083 4,318 
			 Camden 377 161 205 0 3,753 2,143 4,335 
			 City of London 3 3 3 11 14 — 31 
			 Croydon 154 8 180 3 4,064 2,739 4,401 
			 Ealing 272 74 183 4 1,990 44 2,449 
			 Enfield 280 131 228 — 3,361 — — 
			 Greenwich 526 222 274 20 2,238 1,296 3,058 
			 Hackney 1,028 616 1,237 5 984 377 3,254 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 297 72 321 37 3,902 1,981 4,557 
			 Haringey 245 64 160 0 4,410 2,936 4,815 
			 Harrow 63 8 49 27 1,079 1,062 1,218 
			 Havering 299 55 49 3 2,351 1,387 2,702 
			 Hillingdon 114 24 60 237 2,100 806 2,511 
			 Hounslow 287 136 63 12 688 238 1,050 
			 Islington 548 288 292 6 2,391 2,351 3,237 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 108 25 219 0 5,740 219 6,067 
			 Kingston upon Thames 97 16 16 — 1,028 — — 
			 Lambeth 970 680 524 59 1,019 917 2,572 
			 Lewisham 1,000 518 190 0 2,835 1,700 4,025 
			 Merton 60 3 79 19 1,956 891 2,114 
			 Newham 321 114 193 12 4,576 3,203 5,102 
			 Redbridge 86 33 145 — 2,500 1,418 — 
			 Richmond upon Thames 0 0 146 6 1,605 1,201 1,757 
			 Southwark 1,773 1,215 381 3 4,210 — 6,367 
			 Sutton 103 7 30 0 2,105 499 2,238 
			 Tower Hamlets 661 331 402 4 4,362 3,049 5,429 
			 Waltham Forest 120 30 193 120 2,306 1,020 2,739 
			 Wandsworth 290 43 251 28 1,510 — 2,079 
			 Westminster 224 84 355 0 2,378 1,114 2,957 
		
	
	(48) Housing Investment Programme (HIP) data from the 2001 Housing Strategy Statistical Appendix.
	(49) Housing Investment Programme (HIP) data from the 2001 Business Plan Statistical Appendix.
	(50) Annual Regulatory and Statistical Returns (RSR 1) made by RSLs to the Housing Corporation.
	Notes:
	1. RSL—Registered Social Landlord.
	2. 'Other public'—includes Government Department, public sector agencies and dwellings owned by other local authorities within the area.
	3. '—' not known/available data.
	There will always be a certain level of empty property for operational reasons, including those vacant for very short periods between tenants.

Exhaust Emissions

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many roadside tests of car exhaust emissions have taken place in the UK during the last 12 months.

David Jamieson: Such tests are undertaken by the Vehicle Inspectorate and by certain local authorities piloting a scheme to improve air quality. The Inspectorate conducted 68,549 tests in 2000–01, and expect to complete a similar number in 2001–02. Local authorities have conducted 1,514 tests since April 2001.

Freight Modelling

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions when the contract for research commissioned by his Department from ME&P on freight modelling was awarded; when the research project began; what research questions are to be answered; when the study is to conclude; what form the final research report will take; and if he will place related documentation in the Library.

David Jamieson: The review of freight modelling was awarded to ME&P on 2 November 2001. It began at the start of December 2001 and the end date of the contract is 31 May 2002.
	Methods used for modelling and forecasting freight both in the UK and abroad will be reviewed and recommendations made on the most appropriate techniques for use by the Department, having regard to the availability of UK data and the opportunities for collecting additional data. The review will include road, rail and other freight modes and will also include the modelling of light goods vehicles.
	The review will in particular examine the scope for modelling the effect on freight movements of changes in the location of activities such as manufacturing, retail and warehousing.
	The findings of the review will be assembled in a final report and this will be placed in the Library.

Research Documents

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will provide a classification of the different categories of written and printed documentation from research conducted by and commissioned by his Department; and if he will state which of these are (a) available to the public, (b) available to hon. Members, (c) regarded as commercially sensitive and unavailable externally and (d) other.

David Jamieson: Information about all my Department's research is made widely available through publications, websites and events. Each programme, however, selects the best method of publication which can range from formal publication of full reports to simple availability on demand, depending on subject matter and likely interest. The exceptions to this policy are work related to national security or which involves issues of commercial confidentiality.
	Full details of my Department's policy on publication of research material are included in the science and innovation strategy on the website. The website also includes details of the research programmes (including for most programmes summaries of research results).

Research Documents

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will list the titles of all (a) unpublished research reports, (b) other documentation from research and (c) other work (i) conducted and (ii) commissioned by his Department (A) between May 1997 and March 2001 and (B) since 1 April 2001.

David Jamieson: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I have given today [ref: 37094]. Details of the Department's research are available on the website, except where it relates to matters of national security or commercial confidentiality. Currently a complete record of research is not held centrally. An improved database facility is near completion.

Train Delays

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 19 December 2001, Official Report, column 524W, on train delays, if he will place in the Library the latest information available on delay and cancellation information, distinguishing between peak and off-peak, as referred to in his reply.

David Jamieson: The SRA publishes every quarter a bulletin (National Rail Trends) which includes Public Performance Measure (PPM) data by network sector, the overall network and for London and the south-east peak hours. This information is placed in the Library and on the SRA web site.
	I also refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to him on 4 February 2002, Official Report, column 741W.
	On Monday 18 February my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State published the DTLR rail performance scorecard which includes PPM information on train operating companies (TOCS) as well as by sector, overall and for London and the south-east peak hours. The information is on the DTLR website and can be accessed through http://www.railways.dtlr.gov.uk. A copy of the press release has been placed in the Library of the House.
	The next report (showing punctuality and reliability for the period from October to December 2001) will be published on 18 March, alongside the SRA's quarterly performance figures for the period.

Train Drivers

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 30 January 2002, Official Report, column 323W, on train drivers, whether the plan, including the part relating to the recruitment and training of 800 new drivers, was agreed with the industry in November 1998; what the timetable is for recruitment and training of the new drivers in this plan; and what progress has been made towards this.

David Jamieson: There was no fixed timetable for the new driver training and recruitment announced in 1998. As at 5 January 2002, 2,433 new drivers have been recruited since November 1998 of whom 1,168 are currently being trained.

Train Drivers

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 11 February 2002, Official Report, column 25W, on train drivers, if he will list the enforcement action taken by the strategic rail authority against (a) South West Trains in 1997 and (b) on Arriva Trains Northern at the end of 2001; and what timetable for increasing driver numbers was agreed between the Strategic Rail Authority and GNER.

David Jamieson: In 1997, South West Trains were threatened with enforcement action and a £1 million penalty. However, as performance improved the penalty was not enforced.
	In October 2001 the Strategic Rail Authority (SRA) consulted on a £2 million penalty and final order against Arriva Trains Northern. The SRA are currently considering and evaluating the responses received from the consultation exercise and will be making a further announcement in due course.
	The SRA and GNER have discussed GNER's need for increased driver numbers, but the SRA has not sought to agree any particular timescale for recruitment.

Rail Freight

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to the answer of 12 February 2002, ref 32546, on rail freight, if he will place the written report in the Library.

David Jamieson: No. It is not normal practice to disclose such information under Section 13 of Part 2 of the code of practice on access to Government information.

Regional Assemblies

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what local authorities have written to his Department to (a) support the establishment of regional assemblies based on a Government defined region, (b) support the establishment of regional assemblies not based on Government defined regions, (c) oppose regional assemblies based on Government defined regions and (d) oppose the policy of setting up regional assemblies.

Alan Whitehead: Since the general election in 2001 the Department has received four representations from local authorities in support of the establishment of regional government based on the Government office regions, and one in support of the establishment of regional assemblies not based on a Government office region. We have not received any under (c) and (d) above.

Regional Assemblies

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many people have indicated their support to him for the setting up of a regional assembly for their region, whether Government-defined or not, through (a) letters, (b) meetings, (c) partitions and distributions and (d) other means in the last six months.

Alan Whitehead: The Department has received 29 written representations in favour of directly elected regional government for their region since the general election in 2001, including a petition signed by over 50,000 people in Cornwall, 17 per cent. of whom gave addresses outside of Cornwall. The Secretary of State and Ministerial colleagues have met many individuals and organisations that have expressed support for regional government, but numbers for these are not recorded.

Regional Assemblies

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what meetings he has had with representatives of constitutional conventions and similar bodies seeking to achieve regional assembly status since the general election.

Alan Whitehead: The Secretary of State and Ministerial colleagues have met formally with representatives of a number of campaigns and constitutional conventions since the general election. These include the Campaign for the English Regions (whose membership includes the constitutional conventions from the North East, North West, West Midlands and South West and the Campaign for Yorkshire), as well as the Cornish Constitutional Convention.

Disused Railway Lines

Joan Humble: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  what financial support is available in 2001–02 to re-open disused railway lines;
	(2)  what support is available from his Department for feasibility studies to examine the possibility of re-opening disused railway lines.

David Jamieson: Projects to reopen disused railway lines would be eligible to apply for Government support from the Rail Passenger Partnership scheme. Already the RPP scheme has supported reopenings in the Vale of Glamorgan, Swanage and Beaulieu station.
	The RPP scheme was re-launched in December 2001 with an extended budget of £430 million over the next 10 years.

Transport (Salisbury)

Robert Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  what was the local transport plan capital settlement for the Salisbury transport package; and how much was identified for (a) roads and (b) the non-roads element of the scheme;
	(2)  what annual spending profiles have been agreed for (a) the roads and (b) the non-roads elements of the Salisbury package of the LTP capital settlement.

Sally Keeble: The annual spending profiles agreed for the road and non-road elements of the Salisbury transport package are as follows.
	
		£ million 
		
			   Non-road Roads 
		
		
			 2001–02 3.58 0.0 
			 2002–03 5.8 0.0 
			 2003–04 3.72 1.38 
			 2004–05 0.35 11.05 
			 2005–06 0.13 0.650

Transport (Salisbury)

Robert Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions on what date the Government office of the south-west (a) signed a contract with and (b) issued a decision letter to Salisbury district council specifying the annual percentage increase in the city parking changes to be imposed as part of the Salisbury transport capital settlement; in what way those increases are conditional on the opening of the first to the fifth park and ride sites; and if he will place a copy of that document in the Library.

Sally Keeble: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions has not signed a contract nor issued a decision letter to Salisbury DC specifying the annual percentage increase in the city parking charges. A failure to implement any significant part of the package of measures, including both the park and ride sites and the increase in parking charges, contained in Wiltshire's LTP for Salisbury could undermine the benefits that the £13.7 million we have earmarked for this scheme will provide.

Transport (Salisbury)

Robert Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions for what reason the A36T detrunking has been delayed; when it will come into effect; and what are the implications for (a) the Wylye Valley relief road, (b) the Brunel Link in Salisbury and (c) the Harnham relief road.

David Jamieson: The Secretary of State confirmed in December 2000 that the A36/A46 route was to remain non-core, and would be detrunked in due course. Negotiations on detrunking between the Highways Agency and the local highway authorities commenced early in 2001. However, the South West Regional Assembly placed a holding objection to detrunking, pending the outcome of a further study into the management of the route and the traffic problems in Bath. This study, entitled the "Bristol/Bath to South Coast Study" is to be commissioned shortly, and is due to report at the end of 2002. Detrunking negotiations are therefore likely to be on hold until early 2003.
	The Wylye Valley relief road will be constructed by Wiltshire county council as a local road scheme following detrunking.
	The Brunel Link and the Harnham relief road is a local road scheme promoted by Wiltshire county council and is not directly affected by the detrunking of the A36.

Alternative Fuels

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions when the regulatory impact assessment will be agreed and published on the (a) Commission Communication on alternative fuels for road transportation and on a set of measures to promote the use of biofuels, (b) draft directive on the promotion of the use of biofuels for transport and (c) draft directive amending Directive 92/81/EEC with regard to the possibility of applying a reduced rate of excise duty on certain mineral oils containing biofuels and on biofuels.

David Jamieson: The Government will shortly be publishing a preliminary regulatory impact assessment covering the draft directive on the promotion of biofuels for transport, copies of which will of course be laid in the Library of the House; there are no plans to publish a regulatory impact assessment for the Commission Communication on alternative fuels as this has no formal legislative implications for the United Kingdom.
	The draft directive amending Directive 92/81/EEC with regard to the possibility of applying a reduced rate of excise duty on certain mineral oils containing biofuels is fiscal legislation and the responsibility of Her Majesty's Treasury.

Lorry Parks

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what plans his Department has for the development of new lorry parks.

David Jamieson: I am concerned to ensure that lorry drivers have the facilities they need. We have already agreed to provide signs from motorways to nearby lorry-only facilities where existing motorway service areas are unable to meet the demand for lorry parking. My officials will shortly be meeting service area operators and representatives of the haulage industry and drivers themselves to explore what more might be done to provide more and better facilities on both motorways and other roads.

Strategic Rail Authority

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many meetings he has had with the chairman of the Strategic Rail Authority since 24 October 2001.

Stephen Byers: I, and other departmental Ministers, meet the Chairman of the Strategic Rail Authority on a regular basis.

Haven Gateway

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what assessment he has made of the improvements to the road and rail infrastructure needed to support the contribution that the Haven Gateway sub-region can make to the economic and social regeneration aspirations of the Eastern Region.

Sally Keeble: The London to Ipswich Multi-Modal Study is investigating ways in which the road and rail network in the A12 and A120 corridors between London and Ipswich and Harwich can be improved. This will help to increase the accessibility of the Haven Gateway sub-region. The study will shortly be presenting options to the public and is expected to report in the summer.
	The Cambridge to Huntingdon Multi-Modal Study has identified improvements to the A14 which will also assist in improving access to Felixstowe, and the SRA is assessing the work required to upgrade the railway line between Felixstowe and Nuneaton to enable trains carrying the larger containers which are now being utilised to run on that particular stretch of track.
	The results of all these studies will be incorporated into the Regional Transport Strategy for the East of England which is currently being prepared and will form the basis of transport policy in the Region in future.

Haven Gateway

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what steps he is taking to support the work of the Haven Gateway Partnership; and if he will give to the Partnership recognition similar to that bestowed on the Thames Gateway Partnership.

Sally Keeble: We warmly welcome the Haven Gateway initiative and when it begins to show some concrete achievements I would be happy to include an engagement with the Partnership as part of a visit to the area.
	The Government Office for the East of England is participating in a number of the initiatives which are being undertaken and is represented at all partner meetings of the Partnership.

Advertising

Alex Salmond: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  what the expenditure was per campaign for the five most expensive media advertising campaigns his Department undertook in the past five parliamentary sessions including the current parliamentary session in (a) Scotland, (b) England, (c) Wales and (d) Northern Ireland; and for the last two parliamentary sessions and the current session, when each advertising campaign (i) began and (ii) ended in (A) Scotland, (B) England, (C) Wales and (D) Northern Ireland;
	(2)  what the cost was of media advertising in each of the past five parliamentary sessions including the current session, for his Department in (a) England, (b) Wales and (c) Northern Ireland; and for the last two parliamentary sessions and the current parliamentary session, what the media advertising expenditure was per month in (i) England, (ii) Wales and (iii) Northern Ireland;

Alan Whitehead: For details of my Department's five most expensive campaigns over the years requested, I refer the hon. Member to my reply to the hon. Member for Isle of Wight (Mr. Turner) on 24 January 2002, Official Report, column 1037W; and to the reply by the then Under-Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport, and the Regions, my hon. Friend the Member for Stretford and Urmston (Beverley Hughes), to the hon. Member for Hertsmere (Mr. Clappison) on 20 December 2000, Official Report, columns 168–69W.
	Expenditure on our "Think!" road safety campaign is ongoing and covers England, Scotland and Wales as too is our fire safety campaign which covers England and Wales. "Are you doing your bit?" campaign expenditure commenced in March 1998 and focused on England following budgetary transfers to the Scottish Executive and Welsh Assembly. Responsibility for that campaign transferred to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs after the last General Election. Foot and mouth public information ran in March to April 2000 in England and Wales. "Traveline" campaign expenditure commences in three English regions in March 2002.
	UK campaign spend is normally divided by region by percentage of population, although advertising on satellite TV is carried nationally.
	Campaign expenditure occurs at various times during the year. While campaign budgets are monitored constantly, we do not keep records of individual campaign expenditure on a monthly basis. Such information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Rail Routes (Scotland)

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  what recent discussions his Department has had with the (a) Scottish Executive and (b) Strategic Rail Authority concerning the re-introduction of the rail route from Edinburgh to the Borders;
	(2)  what plans he has to meet representatives from the (a) Scottish Executive and (b) Strategic Rail Authority to discuss the re-introduction of the Edinburgh to the Borders rail route.

David Jamieson: There have been no such discussions. This is primarily a matter for the Scottish Executive and the Strategic Rail Authority.

Terrorism

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what UK Government-supported schemes exist and at what expense to offer terrorism and war risk cover in the aviation and shipping industries; and what representations he has made about extending such schemes.

David Jamieson: In relation to the maritime sector, a scheme under the Marine and Aviation Insurance (War Risks) Act 1952 has been in place for many years by which the Secretary of State provides reinsurance in return for the payment of a premium which, during periods of low risk, is waived.
	In relation to the aviation sector, the Government introduced a scheme in September 2001 to address the withdrawal of third party war risk and terrorism cover by the insurance industry in the light of the terrorist attacks in America. In accordance with guidelines adopted by the European Commission, the UK charges a premium of up to $1 per passenger per flight, depending on the amount of cover requested by the airline concerned. Airports and other ground service providers are charged a proportion of the premium they paid before cover was withdrawn. The total costs to Government are unquantifiable at this time, as they depend on potential claims, if any, made under the scheme. There are also legal costs, the final amounts of which are not known. The Government will consider whether any residual insurance support may be justified after the present arrangements expire on 20 March.
	The Secretary of State has received representations from the British Air Transport Association, seeking an extension of the scheme until the insurance market has stabilised or other arrangements have been put in place.

A3

Virginia Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  what representations he has received about the A3 at Hindhead; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  when he estimates that construction on the A3 at Hindhead (a) will commence and (b) will be completed.

John Spellar: We continue to receive a number of representations about the A3 Hindhead scheme covering a wide range of topics. The two most important current issues are the proposal to close the existing A3 across Hindhead Common once the new tunnel is completed and the possibility of additional traffic using local roads in and around Grayshott to access the new A3 route.
	The Highways Agency has been carrying out further work on both these issues which is nearing completion. The results will be presented to the Project Advisory and Wider Reference Group meetings later this month. Details will also be contained in a newsletter to be issued shortly.
	Subject to the satisfactory completion of the necessary statutory procedures, we aim to start construction on the scheme in 2005–06. Work will take three to four years.

Rural Services

Virginia Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what recent discussions he has had with Town and County Finance Issues Group concerning the additional costs of providing services in rural areas; and if he will make a statement.

Alan Whitehead: I met with the Town and Country Finance Issues Group last September to discuss the review of local government finance, in particular revenue grant distribution.
	Our aim is to make the revenue grant distribution system fairer and more intelligible. The rural case will be considered carefully, alongside others, before we decide the way forward. Groups representing both counties and districts are on the working groups.

Aircraft Noise

Virginia Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what steps he is taking (a) to monitor and (b) to reduce aircraft noise in the Dunsfold vicinity; what representations he has had on this subject; and if he will make a statement.

John Spellar: Discretionary noise monitoring (in addition to the monitors specified by the Secretary of State for the purposes of the departure noise limits) is the responsibility of the relevant aerodrome, in this case principally Gatwick airport, to whom requests for deployment of mobile monitors should be addressed.
	The Secretary of State has set requirements for controlling noise from aircraft using Gatwick by notice under s.78 of the Civil Aviation Act 1982. Recently the Department, together with BAA and others, has jointly issued a code of practice on noise from arriving aircraft.
	The Department has received and replied to a small number of representations about aircraft noise near Dunsfold since the Adjournment debate on 11 January 2000.

Health and Safety (Computers)

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many employees in his Department who regularly use computers have taken up the provision of a free eye test; and how this service is advertised to (a) current and (b) new staff.

Alan Whitehead: The Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992 require employers to ensure that employees are provided at their request with an appropriate eyesight test. The procedures for such eyesight testing within my Department are publicised periodically in the weekly staff Bulletin. Details are also available on the Department's 'Health and Safety—Good Practice' site on the InfoNet and the Departmental Staff Handbook. Eyesight testing is also covered during the risk assessment process, which is undertaken for all new members of staff and for staff who move or have a major change of hardware, software or workstation furniture. Local line managers' hold budgets for eyesight testing. Information on the take-up of this facility is not held centrally.

Passenger Transport Authorities

Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will make a statement on the cost of each PTA in the last 12 months for which figures are available.

Sally Keeble: PTAs are funded through a levy on constituent district councils and grants from central Government, as in the following table
	
		Cost ofPTAs in 2001–02
		
			 PTA District Levy  Grants  Total cost  
		
		
			 Greater Manchester 102.2 60.3 162.5 
			 Merseyside 81.0 45.3 126.3 
			 South Yorkshire 60.7 13.9 74.6 
			 Tyne and Wear 43.4 12.9 56.3 
			 West Midlands 111.6 28.7 140.2 
			 West Yorkshire 54.1 35.6 89.7

Public Transport

Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions by what means the relative efficiency of different regimes for public transport provision as between shire counties, unitary and metropolitan authorities, and cities is measured.

Sally Keeble: The Transport Act 2000 places specific requirements upon all local transport authorities to formulate transport policies and publish them as a local transport plan (LTP). It also requires them to prepare as part of their LTP, a bus strategy containing policies detailing how they will carry out their functions in order to secure the provision of bus services.
	Our guidance to authorities on LTPs sets out a range of detailed criteria against which each LTP is assessed. These criteria include the development of a bus strategy and the contribution of passenger rail services. The overall assessment of LTPs forms part of our consideration of authorities' bids for capital resources.
	In addition, the Local Government Act 1999 places a specific requirement on local authorities to produce Best Value Performance Plans (BVPP) each year. The BVPP should include a summary of the authority's assessment of its performance in the previous financial year with regard to a range of Best Value performance indicators, including those for transport, along with comparisons with similar authorities.

South East England Development Agency

Howard Flight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what account he has taken for planning purposes of SEEDA's decision to seek to alleviate pinch points in respect of traffic congestion in the south east region, as discussed in the Agency's regional Economic Strategy document, and in particular for a bypass around Arundel; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: The Transport objectives set out in SEEDA's Regional Economic Strategy include selective investment to alleviate pinch points on the road and rail network, pursued within the framework of the Regional Transport Strategy.
	A multi-modal study of the transport problems of the South Coast Corridor is currently being undertaken. As well as providing an over-arching strategy for the corridor, the study is required to consider a number of schemes specifically remitted to it, including the proposed bypass at Arundel. The study is expected to report in summer 2002.

Traffic Congestion

Howard Flight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Arundel and South Downs, of 10 December 2001, Official Report, column 566W, on traffic congestion, whether the consultation exercise on fast-track procedures for building roads in excess of 30 kilometres has been undertaken; and if he will make a statement.

Sally Keeble: Our consultation paper "New Parliamentary Procedures for Processing Major Infrastructure Projects" covers a wide range of major infrastructure projects; including construction, on a new route, of a dual carriageway trunk road in excess of 30 kilometres in length. An announcement was made by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State to my right hon. Friend the hon. Member for Copeland (Dr. Cunningham), on 17 December 2001, Official Report, column 22W. Copies of the consultation paper were placed in the Libraries of both Houses. The deadline for responses is 22 March 2002.

Mineral Planning Guidance

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  when he expects to publish the new MPG6;
	(2)  if he will make an interim statement on MPG6.

Sally Keeble: The Green Paper "Planning: delivering a fundamental change" has proposed that all planning guidance, including that for minerals, should be reviewed. The consultation on the Green Paper will end on 18 March 2002 after which decisions will be taken, in the light of the responses, on the nature of future guidance and appropriate timetables for producing it. The Green Paper proposes that current minerals planning guidance notes (MPGs), including those on specific minerals such as MPG6 on aggregates, should become technical or system notes to support a statement of core policy in MPG1. Given that this could delay the present revision of MPG6, whatever form that might take, it has been decided that the quantitative national and regional guidelines for aggregates provision within MPG6 should be revised as a matter of urgency, ahead of the revision of policy in MPG1. Work is currently taking place on that basis and it is hoped that a consultation draft of this revision will be published in the late spring of this year.

Mineral Planning Guidance

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  what the timetable is for the review of MPG1;
	(2)  if he will make an interim statement on the review of MPG1.

Sally Keeble: The Green Paper "Planning: delivering a fundamental change" has proposed that all planning guidance, including that for minerals, should be reviewed, and that priority should be given, among the minerals planning guidance, to the headline guidance on mineral working and restoration in MPG1. The Green Paper proposes that these reviews should be time-tabled over the next two years. The consultation on the Green Paper will end on 18 March 2002 after which decisions will be taken, in the light of the responses, on the action to be taken on its proposals.

Planning Policy

Ivan Henderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will assess the merits of making it compulsory for developers to install dropped kerbs at junctions in new building developments as part of the review of planning policy.

Sally Keeble: The Green Paper, "Planning: delivering a fundamental change" is principally concerned with the operation of the planning process. The provision of dropped kerbs is a matter for highways authorities, who would normally be involved in discussions about new developments. My Department has issued guidance to local authorities to encourage the provision of dropped kerbs to assist people with impaired mobility, and those in wheelchairs or with prams, to cross the road.

Playing Fields

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if the Government will extend to all playing fields the procedural protection provided for school playing fields; and if he will make a statement.

Sally Keeble: I have no plans to extend the provisions of the Town and Country Planning (Playing Fields) (England) Direction 1998 to cover all playing fields. Development or change of use of playing fields already requires planning permission from the local planning authority. In considering such applications, planning authorities must have regard to the policies in their own development plans and the guidance set out in Planning Policy Guidance (PPG) Note 17: "Sport and Recreation". PPG17 makes clear that playing fields should be protected unless there is an excess of provision.

Neighbourhood Renewal

Martin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what progress has been made in implementing the Urban White Paper for neighbourhood renewal and its impact on the inner cities.

Sally Keeble: The Urban White Paper "Our towns and cities: the future" set out the Government's vision of a better quality of life for all in urban areas. We have provided an account of progress to date as well as the key objectives we aim to deliver on over the next two years in a six-monthly Implementation Bulletin. The next edition is due to be issued in March 2002. We also have an Implementation Plan which tracks progress on all 198 new initiatives and policies in the White Paper. Both documents can be found at www.regeneration.dtlr.gov.uk/ policies/ourtowns/action.
	The Urban White Paper promised that in 2002 Ministers across Government would host an Urban Summit. This will take place on 31 October and 1 November at the ICC in Birmingham. The Summit will provide the opportunity to establish and reconfirm the Government-wide commitment to urban renaissance, identify and celebrate progress by individual towns and cities, underline that there is much to do and identify where further action is needed and evaluate the recommendations of the White Paper.
	The Government's vision for neighbourhood renewal was set out in the Neighbourhood Renewal Strategy Action Plan, launched by the Prime Minister in January 2001. It aims to deliver economic prosperity, safe communities, high quality schools, decent housing, and better health to the poorest parts of the country.
	The approach will focus main Government Programmes explicitly on deprived areas, many of which are located in inner-city areas, and will require local people and public and private sectors to work in partnership. The strategy is being spearheaded by the Neighbourhood Renewal Unit, a cross-cutting unit based in DTLR and staffed by officials from across Whitehall and the public sector, with secondees from the private and voluntary sector. The Unit has started to roll-out the Government's 10 to 20-year commitment to turn round our most deprived areas.
	Further information on the National Strategy for Neighbourhood Renewal, including updates on progress, can be found on the Neighbourhood Renewal Unit website: www.neighbourhood.dtlr.gov.uk.

Transport-Safety Legislation

John Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what plans he has to introduce transport legislation relating to safety this Session; and if he will make a statement.

Alan Whitehead: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) on 19 October 2001 Official Report, column 1364W.

London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions for what reason the Private Finance Initiative Credit for the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority integrated clothing project was rejected; and for what reason this funding is not provided as a statutory requirement.

Alan Whitehead: The indicative bid which London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority submitted on behalf of a number of fire authorities for an Integrated Clothing Project was not selected for support in the third round of the Private Finance Initiative for the fire service. The bids were assessed according to the criteria set out in Fire Service Circular 3/2001, a copy of which is in the Library. The Integrated Clothing Project did not score as highly as some of the other bids received. The unsuccessful bidders were given feedback on their bids.
	As regards funding, statutory responsibility, under section 1(1)(a) of the Fire Services Act 1947, for securing the services of a fire brigade and its supporting equipment rests locally with the fire authority. The authority receives funding under the revenue support grant arrangements and has the responsibility for setting a budget which will allow it to meet its obligations.

Social Services Spending

Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will list for shire counties the social services standard spending assessment for the elderly, divided by the number of pensioners, adjusted for inflation at current values, in the years 1990–91 to 2001–02 and projected for 2002–03.

Alan Whitehead: The Department does not keep data on people of pensionable age covering the entire period. A table showing the elderly personal social services standard spending assessment per person aged 65 and over, adjusted for inflation at current values, has been placed in the Library of the House.

Social Services Spending

Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  if he will list for Cambridgeshire (a) the difference between the social services budget and that county's social services block SSA in each year from 1992–93 to 2002–03 and (b) that sum divided by the total population financed by that social services department, adjusted for inflation at current values;
	(2)  if he will list the Cambridgeshire County Council spending on social services for (a) the elderly, (b) child protection and (c) groups other than the elderly and children under 18 (i) above SSA and (ii) in total, for 1990–91 to 2001–02 and projected for the financial year 2002–03, adjusted for inflation at current values.

Alan Whitehead: The information requested is as follows:
	
		Cambridgeshire Personal Social Services SSA and Net Revenue Expenditure (NRE) at 2001–02 prices(51)
		
			  SSA (£000) NRE(52) (Outturn) £000 Difference (NRE-SSA) £000 Total population(53) Difference per head (£) 
		
		
			 1990–91 49,552 63,030 13,478 651,626 21 
			 1991–92 57,392 65,469 8,077 655,047 12 
			 1992–93 59,993 66,842 6,850 664,520 10 
			 1993–94 60,990 69,097 8,107 669,898 12 
			 1994–95 72,327 80,234 7,907 677,689 12 
			 1995–96 79,653 88,824 9,171 682,640 13 
			 1996–97 86,772 96,018 9,246 686,864 13 
			 1997–98 90,606 100,501 9,895 693,871 14 
			 1998–99(54) 68,061 75,794 7,733 544,948 14 
			 1999–2000 70,200 79,832 9,632 555,684 17 
			 2000–01 72,837 83,040(55) 10,204 563,794 18 
			 2001–02 72,934 86,622(55) 13,688 568,407 24 
			 2002–03(56) 73,974 — — 573,730 — 
		
	
	Notes:
	(51) Figures at 2001–02 prices using GDP deflators. NRE is expenditure funded by council tax, general Government grants and use of reserves.
	(52) NRE is used to compare with SSA.
	(53) SSA figures are based on population figures two years previous. For example 2000–01 population figures are used in calculating 2002–03 SSA figures and so the population figure recorded for 2002–03 in the table is actually the level of population at 2001–02.
	(54) 1998–99 reorganisation of authority. Former authority included the current city of Peterborough.
	(55) Budget figures.
	(56) Expenditure figures are not available for 2002–03.
	Sources: 1992–93—1999–2000 Revenue Summary (RS) and Revenue Grant (RG) returns. 2000–01—2001–02 General Fund Revenue Accounts Budget Estimate return (RA) and RA(SG) (Income from Specific, Special and Supplementary Grants).
	The authority provides figures on expenditure and grant income on the quoted sources. However, in the calculation of Net Revenue Expenditure, certain adjustments are made, which in particular include an estimate of Capital Expenditure Charged to Revenue Account (CERA). It is not possible to provide this analysis at the sub-block level. However, the authority does provide figures on Net Current Expenditure (NCE) separately for children and families, and for older people services. This includes expenditure funded by all specific grants inside aggregate external finance (AEF). It therefore can not be compared with SSA. The table gives the required breakdown by NCE.
	
		Cambridgeshire Personal Social Services Net Current Expenditure (NCE)(57) at 2001–02 prices -- £000
		
			  Childrens and families Older people services Total other PSS Total PSS 
		
		
			 1990–91 13,608 23,305 26,476 63,389 
			 1991–92 14,023 24,309 28,324 66,656 
			 1992–93 15,136 23,490 29,879 68,505 
			 1993–94 16,209 26,400 34,490 77,098 
			 1994–95 27,925 37,778 25,636 91,339 
			 1995–96 31,268 39,760 27,220 98,248 
			 1996–97 32,692 41,091 29,202 102,984 
			 1997–98 35,870 39,407 31,001 106,279 
			 1998–99(58) 22,926 32,625 24,732 80,283 
			 1999–2000 21,158 35,634 29,077 85,869 
			 2000–01 20,369 38,923 30,160 89,452 
			 2001–02(59) 22,490 40,091 31,617 94,198 
		
	
	Notes:
	(57) NCE is running expenses plus employee expenses minus sales, fees and charges and other (non-grant) income. Figures at 2001–02 prices using GDP deflators.
	(58) 1998–99 reorganisation of authority.
	(59) Budget figures.
	Sources: 1990–91—2000–01 Revenue Summary (RS). 2001–02 General Fund Revenue Account Budget Estimate return, (NCE) column.

Social Services Spending

Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will list for shire counties, for the financial year 1990–91 to 2001–02, and projected for the year 2002–03, adjusted for inflation at current values (a) the total spending, (b) SSA spending and (c) under or over spending on social services for (i) the elderly, (ii) child protection and (iii) other categories.

Alan Whitehead: The relevant information has been placed in the Libraries of the house.

Social Services Spending

Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what is the standard spending assessment for social services for elderly people, per pensioner, for (i) Cambridgeshire and (ii) Suffolk in each year from 1990–91 to 2001–02, adjusted for inflation at current values; and what is the Standard Spending Assessment for social services for child protection, per child under the age of 18, for (i) Cambridgeshire and (ii) Suffolk in each year from 1990–91 to 2001–02, adjusted for inflation at current values.

Alan Whitehead: The Department does not keep data on people of pensionable age covering the entire period. The table gives the Elderly Personal Social Services (PSS) Standard Spending Assessment (SSA) per person aged 65 and over together with the Children's PSS SSA per child aged 0 to 17, adjusted for inflation at current values 1 , for Cambridgeshire and Suffolk. The SSAs have been averaged over the number of people for the period used in calculating the SSAs ie for 2001–02, the mid-1999 population estimates have been used.
	
		£ per head 
		
			  Elderly PSS SSA per person aged 65 and over Children's PSS SSA per child aged 0 to 17  
			 Year Cambridgeshire(61) Suffolk Cambridgeshire Suffolk 
		
		
			 1990–91 270.85 264.04 89.46 82.84 
			 1991–92 313.57 306.72 98.98 92.18 
			 1992–93 320.24 320.50 104.10 96.73 
			 1993–94 318.00 320.49 106.92 99.92 
			 1994–95 374.16 369.86 131.49 114.93 
			 1995–96 439.80 429.71 128.47 109.23 
			 1996–97 494.24 483.29 124.30 107.31 
			 1997–98 533.58 517.89 117.06 103.95 
			 1998–99 528.18 533.30 102.84 105.23 
			 1999–2000 549.29 551.14 95.68 104.30 
			 2000–01 564.21 566.68 97.10 106.89 
			 2001–02 565.25 574.07 91.50 100.42 
		
	
	(60) Deflated using the GDP Deflator, 2001–02 equals 100.
	(61) The Cambridgeshire (City of Peterborough) (Structural, Boundary and Electoral Changes) Order 1996 came into force on 1 April 1998. Prior to this Cambridgeshire county council also provided services for the area now covered by Peterborough city council.

County Councillors

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how much county councillors with cabinet responsibility are paid (a) in Lancashire and (b) on average in the UK.

Alan Whitehead: My Department does not collect information from councils on the average allowances of council members. No statistics are available for the average special responsibility allowance paid to county councillors in Lancashire.
	The average special responsibility allowance for county councillors with cabinet responsibility in those councils which made the information available to the Improvement and Development Agency, as of 12 October 2001, is £11,643.
	Source: www. idea-knowledge.gov. uk, Member Allowance Summary Survey.

Parish Councils

Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will take steps to allow postal ballots for communities which have a parish meeting and are holding elections for parish councils.

Alan Whitehead: A postal vote is already available to any eligible elector who requests it for the election of parish and community councils. Postal votes are not currently available for parish or community polls demanded at parish or community meetings, but as part of our initiatives, following the Rural White Paper (Cm 4909) to strengthen local democracy at parish level, we will be reviewing the operation of parish polls, including the issue of allowing postal voting.

Arthur Andersen

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  how many contracts have been let to Arthur Andersen by his Department since 1997 on (a) matters relating to the railways and (b) other matters;
	(2)  pursuant to his answer of 8 January 2002, Official Report, column 584W, on departmental consultants, on what matters relating to Railtrack his Department is continuing to receive advice from Arthur Andersen.

Stephen Byers: pursuant to his reply, 7 February 2002, c. 1097W
	I have further information on the number of contracts awarded to Arthur Andersen. The additional contract was for auditing work on the Railways Pension Scheme.
	The number of contracts that have been let to Arthur Andersen since 1997 are as follows:
	Three—two on accountancy and taxation issues relating to the administration process and on the restructuring of Railtrack plc. One as external auditors for the Railways Pension Scheme (appointed by the corporate trustee of the scheme, Railway Pension Trustee Company Ltd.
	Three—two are framework agreements (framework agreements do not guarantee work; each firm on the agreement has to bid for individual tenders). One housing research project was also completed in 1999.

Archaeological Services

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will make a statement on the Government's proposals to encourage local government archaeological services in protecting and promoting the historic environment.

Kim Howells: I have been asked to reply.
	The Government's policy statement on the Historic Environment, A Force for Our Future (December 2001), recognises that archaeological remains are an integral part of the historic environment. It acknowledges that the sites and monuments records maintained by local authorities are a valuable resource with potential to be a powerful educational tool, both for professional and academic users and also for the general public. The Government consider that the services offered by the records should be enhanced and integrated with other records relevant to the historic environment, and that access should be facilitated through the use of electronic media. Accordingly, we will publish a consultation paper covering a range of options in the summer.
	The Government also recognise the role played by local government archaeologists in the effective implementation of PPG16, and welcome English Heritage's work in establishing the Archaeology Training Forum to develop an education and training strategy for these and other members of the archaeology profession.

Economic Regeneration

Martin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what further plans he has to support economic regeneration in regions dependent on declining traditional industries.

Alan Johnson: I have been asked to reply.
	The Department is responsible for the Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) in England. They have established regional economic strategies which consider, among other issues, the role of traditional industries and the measures which can be taken to modernise these and to broaden the region's economic base. In doing this, the RDAs work closely with sector directorates in my Department and in others with an interest and with the Small Business Service and Invest.UK. The total RDA budget is increasing from £1.3 billion in this financial year to £1.7 billion in 2003–04, and they are being given greater freedom in deploying this money.
	In Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, the matters covered by the RDAs are the responsibility of the devolved Administrations.

Tower Blocks (Coventry)

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many tower blocks have been (a) demolished and (b) constructed since 1997 in (i) Coventry and (ii) the UK.

Brian Wilson: I have been asked to reply.
	Information on the demolition and construction of tower blocks is not held centrally.

Public Transport Insurance

Gwyneth Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what assessment he has made of the number of insurers prepared to accept the provision of insurance for fleets of buses in the United Kingdom; and if he will refer the insurance industry to the Office of Fair Trading for investigation of competition conditions in the transport insurance industry.

Ruth Kelly: I have been asked to reply.
	Insurance companies are responsible for determining the terms, conditions and price of their products, within a legal framework which aims at preserving a free and open market in which insurers can compete with each other in the provision of services.

LORD CHANCELLOR

Reporting Procedures

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what reporting procedures exist between the Northern Ireland Court Service and her office.

Rosie Winterton: There is the closest possible working relationship between the Northern Ireland Court Service and the Lord Chancellor's Department both at official and ministerial level. This reflects the fact that the Northern Ireland Court Service is a department of the Lord Chancellor's and undertakes similar policy and administrative responsibilities to those undertaken by the Lord Chancellor's Department in England and Wales.
	The Northern Ireland Court Service contributes to the Lord Chancellor's Department report. It also publishes an annual report to the Lord Chancellor detailing performance against its strategic objectives as set out in the court service's corporate plan. In addition, the Northern Ireland Court Service provides routine briefing on current issues to the Lord Chancellor on a monthly basis. Other policy and administrative issues are brought to the attention of the Lord Chancellor or of the LCD Parliamentary Secretary, as appropriate, by way of regular submissions.
	Officials of the Northern Ireland Court Service hold regular meetings on current issues with the Lord Chancellor, the LCD Parliamentary Secretary, and with the officials of the Lord Chancellor's Department and its agencies.

Statutory Instruments

John Bercow: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if she will list the statutory instruments issued by her Department in the last 12 months, indicating (a) the purpose of each and (b) the cost of each to (i) public funds, (ii) businesses and (iii) individuals.

Rosie Winterton: A list of statutory instruments has been placed in the Libraries of both Houses. It includes those signed by or on behalf of the Lord Chancellor during the 12 months to 12 February 2002, and also Orders in Council made during that period for which the Lord Chancellor's Department was responsible. A list of Northern Ireland statutory rules signed by or on behalf of the Lord Chancellor is also included. The lists include a brief summary of the purpose of each instrument: further details will be found in instruments' explanatory notes.
	Policy decisions implemented by secondary legislation may increase, reduce or have no effect on costs to others. It is not possible, save at disproportionate cost, to attribute specific cost increases or reductions to specific statutory instruments.

Lost/Stolen Property

John Bercow: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if she will list those items valued at less than £50 each which have been stolen or lost from the Department in each of the last four years.

Rosie Winterton: I refer the hon. Member to my answer to the right hon. and learned Member for North-East Fife (Mr. Campbell) 22 January 2002, Official Report, column 805W.

Public Guardianship Office

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many complaints she has received about the performance of the Public Guardianship Office in each month since it was established.

Rosie Winterton: The Public Guardianship Office (PGO) was established on 1 April 2001. The number of complaints received about the performance of the PGO is as follows:
	
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 April 2001 47 
			 May 2001 45 
			 June 2001 62 
			 July 2001 54 
			 August 2001 41 
			 September 2001 34 
			 October 2001 35 
			 November 2001 50 
			 December 2001 39

Civil Servants

Paul Burstow: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many new entrants to the civil service were employed in her Department in each of the last five years; and how many in each year were aged 50 and over.

Rosie Winterton: New entrants employed in the civil service in the Lord Chancellor's Department (including agencies), and those aged 50 years or over, in each of the last five years were as follows.
	
		
			  New entrants Aged 50 and over 
		
		
			 1996–97 422 81 
			 1997–98 661 142 
			 1998–99 1,004 145 
			 1999–2000 689 120 
			 2000–01 824 134

Civil Servants

John Bercow: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what was the (a) percentage and number of rail journeys undertaken on first class tickets, (b) average cost of a first class journey by rail and (c) total cost of rail travel in each of the past four years broken down by grade of civil servant.

Rosie Winterton: The information requested is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Legal Aid

Vincent Cable: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department when the Government propose next to review fully the (a) salaries and (b) salary structure of (i) legal aid lawyers, (ii) legal aid support staff and (iii) legal aid solicitors; and if she will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: The Legal Services Commission (LSC) employs a small number of lawyers (barristers and solicitors) and support staff in the Public Defender Service. The first office was opened in May 2001 and there are no immediate plans to review salary structures.
	Other than this, the LSC does not pay salaries to lawyers (barristers or solicitors) or support staff carrying out publicly funded work. The Department and the Commission are, however, concerned that the levels of remuneration paid to lawyers by the Commission from the Community Legal Service Fund and the Criminal Defence Service should ensure appropriate provision of legal advice and representation.

Legal Aid

Vincent Cable: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department when the Government last fully reviewed the legal aid system; and when they propose to do so next.

Rosie Winterton: The Modernising Justice White Paper, published in December 1998, set out proposals for major reforms to the legal aid system in England and Wales. These reforms, which were introduced by the Access to Justice Act 1999, were largely implemented on or after April 2000. We are confident that the system is meeting its stated objectives. We have no plans for a full review of the system, although we do keep aspects of the system under regular review.

Freedom of Information Act

Harry Cohen: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department when he estimates all the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 will be implemented.

Michael Wills: I announced the timetable for implementation of the Act on 13 November 2001, Official Report, column 692W. This timetable means that the Act will be fully implemented in January 2005; 11 months before the deadline set by the Act.

Asylum Appeals

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many asylum appeals to adjudicators were (a) heard and (b) adjourned in (i) 2000 and (ii) 2001 to the latest convenient date; and how many adjournments were at the request of (A) the appellant and (B) the Home Office.

Rosie Winterton: Of the asylum appeals to adjudicators:
	between 1 October and 31 December 2000 (earliest reliable information available):
	13,127 appeals were heard, of which
	3,520 cases were adjourned at hearing.
	between 1 January and 30 June 2001:
	25,418 appeals were heard, of which
	6,691 cases were adjourned at hearing.
	Comprehensive information on "adjournment by reason" is only available for cases after 1 July 2001.
	and between 1 July 2001 and 31 December 2001:
	29,881 appeals were heard, of which
	7,914 cases were adjourned at hearing.
	4,168 cases were adjourned by reason of the appellant or their representative.
	1,397 cases were adjourned by reason of the Home Office.
	The remaining 1,938 cases were adjourned for other reasons.

Correspondence

Nigel Evans: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what the average response time was for responding to departmental correspondence; what percentage of letters took longer than one month for a response; and what percentage took longer than three months for a response in each of the last five years.

Michael Wills: The Department and its agencies deal with and monitor correspondence in different ways, and these involve a range of time limits and targets. Information on average response times and answering letters within target is set out in the following tables. Information on percentage of letters that took longer than one and three months to respond is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	
		Lord Chancellor's Department and its agencies—average time response to correspondence -- Working days
		
			  1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 
		
		
			 Lord Chancellor's Department 15 13 14 13 9 
			 Court Service — — — — — 
			 Public Guardianship Office(62) — — — — — 
			 Land Registry — — — — — 
			 Public Record Office — — — — — 
		
	
	(62) Formerly Public Trust Office
	Information from Court Service, HM Land Registry, Public Guardianship Office and Public Record Office on average response time is not readily available and could be only at disproportionate cost.
	
		Lord Chancellor's Department and its agencies—percentage of correspondence answered within target (target in working days)
		
			  1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02  
			  Percentage (Target) Percentage (Target) Percentage (Target) Percentage (Target) Percentage (Target) 
		
		
			 Lord Chancellor's Department 77 (20) 72 (20) 88 (20) 84 (20) 85 (15) 
			 Court Service (64)— — 98 (20) 93 (15) 87 (15) 92 (15) 
			 Public Guardianship Office(63) 95 (20) 96 (20) 92 (20) 89 (20) 92 (15) 
			 HM Land Registry 96 (5) 96 (5) 96 5 96 (5) 96 (5) 
			 Public Record Office 99.5 (10) 98.5 (10) 98.5 (10) 99.6 (10) 99.3 (10) 
		
	
	(63) Formerly Public Trust Office
	(64) Not available

Power of Attorney

John Burnett: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department whether the Public Guardianship Office intends to increase the charge for registering an enduring power of attorney.

Rosie Winterton: The Public Guardianship Office has recently conducted a review of all the fees charged. Some fees will need to be increased to reflect costs. The results of the review are being considered and the outcome will be announced in due course.

Departmental Staff

Christopher Chope: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many staff left the service of her Department and its agencies in the year ended 31 March 2001; how many left before attaining the formal retirement age of 60 years; and in respect of how many her Department and its agencies assumed responsibilities for making payments until retirement age.

Rosie Winterton: (a) in the year ended 31 March 2001, 1,086 staff left the service of the Lord Chancellor's Department and its agencies; (b) 864 staff left before attaining the formal retirement age of 60 years, of which 74 per cent. resigned, 12 per cent. transferred to other Government departments, 6 per cent. retired on ill health grounds and 3 per cent. were dismissed; (c) the Department and its agencies assumed responsibility for making payment until retirement age for 18 members of staff.

Sentencing

Vincent Cable: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if she will review the training received by judges in order to encourage consistent sentencing.

Rosie Winterton: Judicial training is the responsibility of the Judicial Studies Board (JSB) which is an independent non-departmental public body. It is chaired by Lord Justice Waller.
	All judges hearing criminal cases attend a residential induction course upon appointment and regular residential continuation seminars thereafter organised by the JSB. These include lectures and discussions on sentencing, one of the objectives of which is to encourage consistency. Recorders and Circuit Judges also attend annual circuit based seminars specifically devoted to sentencing issues. The content of the training received at these courses is kept under constant review by the Criminal Committee of the JSB, and updated to take in current issues where necessary.

Mobile Telephones

John Bercow: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if she will list, for 1997–98 and for each subsequent financial year, the amount spent (a) in the United Kingdom and (b) abroad by (i) her Department, (ii) its agencies and (iii) its non-departmental public bodies on (1) providing mobile telephone equipment, including handsets and other associated equipment, (2) telephone calls made using such equipment and (3) telephone calls made using privately owned mobile telephones but subsequently reclaimed by (x) Ministers and (y) staff.

Rosie Winterton: Not all the information requested is available.
	
		£ 
		
			  1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02(65) 
		
		
			 Item 1(66)  
			 Court Service n/a 36,131 90,179 99,411 66,142 
			   
			 Item 2(67)  
			 LCD HQ n/a 354 2,038 1,803 1,032 
			 Court Service n/a 10,206 38,832 52,280 52,345 
			 Public Guardianship Office (formerly Public Trust Office) n/a 0 1,870 2,130 1,684 
			 Legal Services Commission (formerly legal Aid Board) 21,125 14,578 27,653 61,422 n/a 
			 Information Commissioner 1,069 1,273 2,189 1,492 1,185 
		
	
	(65) To December
	(66) Mobile line rental costs are shown. These figures include the cost of handsets which are provided by the supplier as part of the mobile line rental contract.
	(67) The cost of mobile telephone calls are shown.

Entertainment Costs

John Bercow: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department 
	(1)  if she will list for 1997–98 and each subsequent financial year the amount spent by (a) her Department, (b) its agencies and (c) its non- departmental public bodies in respect of hotel and other similar privately-provided accommodation (i) in the UK and (ii) abroad for (A) Ministers, (B) staff and (C) other persons; if she will list the proportion of this cost incurred in respect of (x) food and (y) alcohol in each case; and if she will list the average cost per hotel room or similar unit of accommodation provided in each case;
	(2)  if she will list for 1997–98 and for each subsequent financial year, including the current year to date, the amount spent by (a) her Department, (b) its agencies and (c) its non-departmental public bodies on (i) food and (ii) alcohol, indicating how much was spent on guests, and how much in respect of (A) Ministers and (B) staff, broken down to show how much was provided directly by her Department and how much reclaimed.

Rosie Winterton: The information requested is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Court Dress

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if she will make a statement on her plans for the future of wigs as part of court dress.

Rosie Winterton: Discussions between the Lord Chief Justice, the senior judiciary, the legal professional bodies and other interested parties are continuing. The Lord Chancellor will want to consider with the Heads of Division the final results of that consultation before deciding what action, if any, it would be appropriate to take.

Legal Costs

John Bercow: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what legal costs have been incurred by the Lord Chancellor's Department in each of the last four years.

Rosie Winterton: The Legal Costs (including VAT) incurred by the Lord Chancellor's Department and the Court Service in each of the last four years were as follows:
	(a) 1998–99: £1,482,297
	(b) 1999–2000: £2,296,799
	(c) 2000–01: £2,170,675
	(d) 2001 to date: £1,775,568.

Health and Safety (Computers)

Vincent Cable: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many employees in her Department who regularly use computers have taken up the provision of a free eye test; and how this service is advertised to (a) current and (b) new staff.

Rosie Winterton: The Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992, effective January 1993, require employers to provide and pay for, upon request from an employee, an eye and eyesight test. There is a requirement for further tests at regular intervals; the optometrist doing the first test can recommend when the next one should be. In addition, employers must pay the cost of special spectacles required where normal ones cannot be used.
	The eye-care scheme is publicised in the employee handbook and is mentioned to all new staff on the induction for new entrants event. In addition the scheme is regularly advertised in departmental publications which are circulated to all staff and on the departmental IT system.
	In 2001 a total of 2,267 eye-test vouchers were applied for and issued. This figure represents 17.8 per cent. of the staff employed by the Department.

Bail

Shaun Woodward: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department 
	(1)  what plans the Government have to review the guidelines given to magistrates on granting bail to repeat offenders;
	(2)  what recent guidelines he has given to magistrates on granting bail to repeat offenders.

Michael Wills: Bail is a matter solely for the court before which a defendant appears. It would not be right for a Government Minister to interfere with the process of independent judicial discretion which magistrates exercise under the Bail Act 1976, which governs the granting of bail. Accordingly, no guidelines have been issued by the Lord Chancellor's Department in relation to the granting of bail to repeat offenders and there are no plans to review this position.

Judicial Appointments

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what consultation has taken place between (a) the Northern Ireland Court Service and (b) the Commissioner for Judicial Appointments with the Equality Commission concerning judicial appointments; and what recommendations have been made.

Rosie Winterton: The Northern Ireland Court Service, through its Diversity Unit, has regular contact with the Equality Commission in respect of appointments.
	The Commissioner for Judicial Appointments for Northern Ireland, Mr. J. V. Simpson took up office on 11 December 2001. The Commissioner is undertaking an initial programme of familiarisation meetings and will be contacting the Equality Commission in this context.

Judicial Appointments

Dave Watts: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many staff are employed to advise the Lord Chancellor on judicial appointments; and at what annual cost.

Rosie Winterton: In January 2002 there were approximately 190 staff employed in the Judicial Group advising on appointments including, in addition to those working on the more than 800 specific appointments per annum, those advising on related matters such as appointments policy, terms and conditions of service including pensions, correspondence about judges and the promotion of a more diverse judiciary. The total expected pay bill cost for the financial year ending 31 March 2002 is approximately £4,700,000 including the estimated cost of new members of staff expected to take up positions with the Group before 31 March 2002.

Immigration Appellate Authority

David Lidington: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department when the Appellate Authority received notice of an appeal in the case ISB/IMM/G6193; when he intends to notify the appellant of a hearing date; and if he will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: This case was received by the Immigration Appellate Authority on 8 February 2002. It has been listed for a first hearing and for a full hearing at Hatton Cross. Notice of Hearing was sent to the appellant on 13 February 2002.

Immigration and Asylum Appeals

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how she plans to consult on proposals to change the immigration and asylum appeals system.

Rosie Winterton: The Secure Borders, Safe Haven—Integration with Diversity in Modern Britain White Paper was published on 7 February 2002. Copies have been supplied to Parliament. The Home Office had an extensive list of consultees that included ministerial colleagues, relevant Opposition spokespersons, non- governmental bodies, and other interested parties. The consultation period ends on 21 March 2002.

County Courts

Keith Vaz: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many county courts Ministers in his Department have visited since 7 June 2001.

Michael Wills: I have visited the following County Courts since 7 June 2001:
	Newcastle Combined Court Centre on 28 November 2001; and Swindon Combined Court Centre; on 16 January 2002.
	My ministerial colleagues have undertaken the following visits:
	Baroness Scotland of Asthal QC: Central London County Court, on 23 January 2002; and Edmonton County Court, on 18 October 2001;
	Parliamentary Secretary, my hon. Friend for Doncaster, Central (Ms Winterton): Brighton County Court on 11 September 2001; Leeds Combined Court Centre, on 26 September 2001;
	The following Court Houses in Northern Ireland: Limavady, Londonderry, Larne, Antrim, Bandridge and Newry, on 22 January 2002; and Bangor and Newtownards, on 6 September 2001.
	The Lord Chancellor visited the Birmingham Civil Justice Centre, which encompasses Birmingham County Court, on 7 December 2001.

Hereditary Issues

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many hereditary issues have been referred to him since taking office.

Michael Wills: Under the House of Lords Standing Order 10, made on 26 July 1999, the Clerk of the Parliaments maintains a register of hereditary peers, other than peers of Ireland, who wish to stand in any by-election held to fill vacancies occurring due to the death of any of the 90 elected hereditary peers expected from the provisions of the House of Lords Act 1999. House of Lords Standing Order 10A, made on 13 November 2000, requires any hereditary peer who has succeeded to a title since the making of the standing order to petition the House. These petitions are referred to the Lord Chancellor to consider and report on whether a peer has established the right to be included in the register.
	Since the making of Standing Order 10A, the House of Lords has referred five such petitions to the Lord Chancellor relating to the Dukedom of Sutherland and to the Baronies of Aldington, Cawley, Combermere and Terrington.
	The Lord Chancellor has, in addition, considered two claims in relation to Irish peerages: the Earldom of Roden and the Barony of Dunsany.

Solway Harvester

Peter Duncan: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what representations he has received from the Isle of Man Government regarding the timing of the publication of the MAIB report into the Solway Harvester.

Michael Wills: I have received no representations from the Isle of Man Government on this matter.

Departmental Website

John Bercow: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what the total cost of his Department's website was in real terms in each of the last four years; and how many hits it received in each of those years.

Michael Wills: The total annual cost of the LCD website could not be obtained without incurring disproportionate costs because website related work is not differentiated from other work in the production and publication of departmental material.
	The number of unique visitors (a more reliable indicator of individuals accessing web pages than hits) to the Department's website, www.lcd.gov.uk is as follows:
	
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 1997–98 54,688 
			 1998–99 147,958 
			 1999–2000 291,582 
			 2000–01 358,161

Public Bodies (Chairmen)

Eric Forth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if she will list the appointments made by his Department since 1 May 1997 of chairmen of (a) non-departmental public bodies, (b) commissions, (c) inquiries, (d) agencies and (e) task forces; and if he will list their (i) term of office, (ii) salary and (iii) known political affiliation (A) past and (B) present.

Rosie Winterton: The non-judicial appointments made to the chairmanship of the Lord Chancellor's non-departmental public bodies since 1 May 1997 are set out in the following tables. Information on political affiliation is not collected.
	There are no appointments to be reported under (b), (c) or (d).
	Information on the number, remit and membership of task forces, ad hoc advisory groups and reviews has been published by the Cabinet Office on a regular basis. The first report was published on 11 January 2000 and gives information for the period between 1 May 1997 to 31 October 1999. A second report was published on 27 July 2000, and covered the period 1 November 1999 to 30 April 2000. A third report was published on 13 December 2000 covering the period 1 May 2000 to 31 October 2000. The most recent report: Task Forces, Ad Hoc Advisory Groups and Reviews, was issued in October 2001, covers the period of the financial year 2000–01. Copies of these reports have been placed in the Libraries of the House.
	
		Non-departmental public bodies
		
			 Chairman Committee Appointed Retirement 
		
		
			  Advisory committees on justices of the peace 
			 Mr. James Tidmarsh (LL) Avon 1 May 1997 2007 
			 Mr. James Tidmarsh (LL) Bristol 1 May 1997 2007 
			 Mr. Keith Gorton North Cleveland 2001 2006 
			 Mr. Alfred Illingworth South Cleveland 2001 2006 
			 Mr. Eric Dancer (LL) Devon 1998 2015 
			 Mr. David Libby Plymouth 2001 2004 
			 Captain M. Fulford-Dobson (LL) Dorset 1999 2006 
			 Sir Paul Nicholson (LL) Durham 1998 2013 
			 Mr. Alan Willett (LL) Kent 2002 2011 
			 Mr. Raymond Harris Leicester 1999 2005 
			 Lady Juliet Townsend (LL) Northamptonshire 1998 2011 
			 Sir John Riddell (LL) Northumberland 2000 2009 
			 Lord Crathorne (LL) North Yorkshire 1999 2014 
			 Dr. Sheila Filshie Nottingham 1 November 1997 2006 
			 Lady Elizabeth Gass (LL) Somerset 1999 2015 
			 Mrs. Sarah Goad (LL) Surrey 29 October 1997 2015 
			 Mrs. P. Stewart-Roberts (LL) East Sussex 2000 2008 
			 Mr. Hugh Wyatt (LL) West Sussex 1999 2008 
			 Mrs. C. Wellingbrook North East London 2001 2004 
			 HH Judge Ellis South East London 2000 2005 
			 HH Judge Mitchell South West London 2001 2007 
			 Mr. Keith Goodall Barnsley 2000 2003 
			 Mr. Christopher Dorries Sheffield 2000 2003 
			 Mr. Paul Bryan North Tyneside 2001 2004 
			 Mr. K. Ahmed South Tyneside 2000 2003 
			 Mr. D. Cocking Solihull 1999 2005 
			 Mr. C. Sykes Sutton Coldfield 1999 2002 
			 Mrs. E. Rawling Walsall 1999 2002 
			 Mrs. R. Tyler Warley 2001 2002 
			 Mr. G. Dobson Bradford 2001 2004 
			 Mrs. E. Bavidge Calderdale 1998 2001 
			 Mrs. Valerie Pace Huddersfield 2001 2004 
			 Mr. J. Bancroft Keighley 2001 2007 
			 Mr. T. Moran Leeds 1998 2004 
			 Mr. A. Mills Pontefract 2002 2004 
			 Mr. Trefor Jones (LL) Clwyd 2001 2012 
			 Mr. G. J. Morgan Ceredigion 2001 2002 
			 Mr. S. Watkins Pembroke 1998 2001 
			 Mr. Simon Boyle (LL) Gwent 2001 2011 
			 Professor Eric Sunderland (LL) Gwynedd 2000 2005 
			 
			  Advisory committees on general commissioners of income tax 
			 Mr. James Tidmarsh (LL) Avon 1 May 1997 2007 
			 Lord Crathorne (LL) Cleveland 2001 2014 
			 Mr. Eric Dancer (LL) Devon 1998 2015 
			 Captain M. Fulford-Dobson (LL) Dorset 1999 2006 
			 Mrs. Julia Davidson Durham 2000 2003 
			 Mrs. P. Stewart-Roberts (LL) East Sussex 2000 2008 
			 Mrs. A. Baglin London Blackheath 1999 2005 
			 Mr. T. Watson London Middlesex 2000 2003 
			 Mr. Peter Banks Greater Manchester 1999 2002 
			 Mr. Alan Willett (LL) Kent 2002 2011 
			 Mr. James Glynn Lancashire 2001 2002 
			 Lady Juliet Townsend (LL) Northamptonshire 1998 2011 
			 Sir John Riddel (LL) Northumberland 2000 2009 
			 Lord Crathorne (LL) North Yorkshire 1999 2014 
			 Lady Elizabeth Gass (LL) Somerset 1999 2015 
			 Mrs. Sarah Goad (LL) Surrey 29 October 1997 2015 
			 Mr. Nigel Sherlock Tyne and Wear 2001 2011 
			 Mr. L. Tomkins West Midlands-1 1999 2002 
			 Mr. Hugh Wyatt (LL) West Sussex 1999 2008 
			 Mr. Colin Beard Wiltshire 1998 2002 
			 Mr. Trefor Jones (LL) Clwyd 2001 2012 
			 Mrs. Lort Philips Pembroke 1998 2007 
			 Mr. Simon Boyle (LL) Gwent 2001 2011 
			 Professor Eric Sunderland (LL) Anglesey 2000 2005 
			 Professor Eric Sunderland (LL) Caernarfon 2000 2005 
			 Professor Eric Sunderland (LL) Meirionnydd 2000 2005 
			 Mrs. L. R. Peate Powys 1999 2004 
			 Mr. A. Mossford South Glamorgan 1999 2005 
		
	
	Notes:
	Lord Lieutenants (LL) hold office until their 75th birthday.
	Others are appointed for a maximum of nine years on a Committee.
	The position is unpaid.
	
		
			 Other NDPBs Individual Dates Current remuneration (£) 
		
		
			 Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service Anthony Hewson OBE January 2001 for 4 years 400 per day 
			 Council on Tribunals Lord Newton of Braintree 1 October 1999 for 3 years 43,140(68) 
			 Insolvency Rules Committee Mr. Justice Evans-Lombe October 1997 to September 2002 Unpaid 
			 Judicial Studies Board Lord Justice Waller 17 May 1999 for 3 years (69)— 
			 Law Commission Lord Justice Carnwath CVO 1 February 1999 to 31 July 2002 (69)— 
			 Legal Services Commission Peter G. Birch CBE 1 April 2000 for 4 years 37,062 
			 Legal Services Consultative Panel(69) Lord Justice Potter 1 January 2001 to 31 December 2004 Unpaid 
			 Strategic Investment Board Dr. Colin Price 1 January 2001 for 3 years 15,000(68) 
		
	
	(68) Annual retainer
	(69) Continues to draw judicial salary
	(70) The Panel replaced the Advisory Committee on Legal Education and Conduct, to which Lord Justice Potter was appointed as chairman on 27 May 1998. Fees were paid to members, but he continued to draw his judicial salary.

Lord Chancellor (Duties)

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department on how many occasions (a) the Lord Chancellor and (b) her ministerial colleagues have refused to meet hon. Members to discuss constituency matters in the last 36 months; and what criteria she uses to arrive at such decisions.

Rosie Winterton: The information requested by my hon. Friend is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. In deciding whether a meeting should or can take place, the Lord Chancellor's policy is to take account of (a) the nature of the issue concerned, any relevant background history, and surrounding circumstances; (b) pressure on his, and other Ministers' diaries; and (c) whether the matter can be fully and satisfactorily dealt with in correspondence.

Working Conditions and Practices

Vincent Cable: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what assessment has been made of the effect of the working time directive on her Department's employees; how many employees are working in excess of 48 hours per week; what steps she is taking to reduce this number; and if she will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: Since the working time directive was introduced we have sought to reduce the number of staff working in excess of 48 hours a week (by adjusting working hours or re-designing jobs) to an absolute minimum. Currently, of all the staff in the Lord Chancellor's Department and its agencies (the Court Service and Public Guardianship Office), around 30 staff regularly work in excess of 48 hours on a voluntary basis. They are principally based in the private offices and press office. Some other staff may work in excess of 48 hours from time-to-time to cover peaks of work or because their work is of a cyclical nature.

Working Conditions and Practices

Vincent Cable: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many people are employed in her Department on a job share contract; and what percentage of vacant positions was advertised on this basis in the last 12 months.

Rosie Winterton: 2,291 staff currently work reduced hours in LCD headquarters, the Court Service and the Public Guardianship Office, a large proportion of whom are engaged on a job-share or job-split arrangement.
	Job-sharing is only one of a number of alternative and flexible working patterns that employees are welcome to take up under the Department's work-life balance policies. The flexibility of the pattern is decided in conjunction with local management to suit an individual's need and the needs of their work.
	95 per cent. of all vacancies advertised over the past 12 months have been suitable for job-sharing. The expectation is that jobs will be available for job-sharing unless line managers can justify otherwise.

Working Conditions and Practices

Vincent Cable: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many cases of work-related stress have been reported in her Department; how much compensation has been paid to employees; how many work days have been lost due to work-related stress, and at what cost; what procedures have been put in place to reduce work-related stress, and at what cost, in each of the last three years; and if she will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: Detailed sick absence statistics are derived from the recording of medical and self-certificates, which are completed by staff or their GPs. While certain illnesses, such as "depression", "anxiety", "general debility" and even "stress" may be indicated on certificates, it is not possible to determine levels of "work-related stress". Consequently, we have no details on the number of working days lost due to work-related stress or the cost to the Department.
	However, we know from recent staff attitude surveys and an audit conducted in 1995 that undue stress at work is a problem for a small minority. To deal with this we have introduced a range of stress management courses for both managers and non-managers. Our in-house welfare service is fully trained, and ideally placed, to deal with issues involving work-related stress.
	Both the Court Service and LCD headquarters also introduced new work-life balance policies during 2001, enabling staff to adopt more effective working patterns to better balance their work and home life.
	We have a legal obligation to provide a safe working environment for all our staff and are committed to meeting targets for reducing the number of working days lost generally to work related injuries and illnesses arising from the Government's Revitalising Health and Safety initiative.

Public Record Office

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what official visits abroad officials from the Public Record Office have made since 1997; at what cost; and for what purpose.

Rosie Winterton: The official visits abroad by officials from the Public Record Office are as follows:
	
		£ 
		
			  Visits Average cost 
		
		
			 1997 15 1,000 
			 1998 21 1,100 
			 1999 25 650 
			 2000 29 800 
			 2001 24 1,900 
		
	
	The visits were made for the following purposes:
	1. Collaboration, joint projects, research and benchmarking mainly with national archives in USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
	2. Service on international committees relating to archives; mainly the International Council or Archives and the European Union, but also the International Standards Organisations; almost all within Europe.
	3. Attendance at conferences on archival topics, mainly in Europe.
	4. Supervisory visits to Mauritius in connection with transcriptions of the PRO on-line catalogue (PROCAT).
	5. Supervisory visits to India and Sri Lanka in connection with transcriptions of the 1901 census.

Departmental Events

John Bercow: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if she will list the (a) conferences, (b) seminars, (c) workshops, (d) exhibitions and (e) press conferences which have been sponsored by her Department and which took place on non-departmental premises in each of the last four years giving the title, purpose, date and cost of each.

Rosie Winterton: This information is not held centrally in the categories required and could be assembled only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Publications

John Bercow: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if she will list the publications issued by the Department in each of the last four years; and what the (a) circulation, (b) cost and (c) purpose of each was.

Rosie Winterton: The information requested is not held centrally in the categories requested; the information could be assembled only at disproportionate costs.

Ministerial Boxes

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department by what means ministerial boxes are conveyed from private offices in her Department to (a) the Lord Chancellor and (b) her fellow Ministers; how frequently and at what expense private courier firms are employed for such a task; and which courier firms have been used for such duties.

Rosie Winterton: Ministerial boxes originating from this Department are transported to Ministers' homes either by Government car or by a service provided by the Royal Mail.

City of London Corporation (Events)

John McDonnell: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if she will list those functions, engagements and events which Ministers, officials and advisers in the Lord Chancellor's Department have attended which have been sponsored, funded, promoted and hosted by the City of London Corporation since 1997.

Rosie Winterton: This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Theft and Fraud

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what her estimate is of the cost of theft and fraud to (a) her Department, (b) its agencies and (c) non-departmental public bodies in each of the last four years.

Patricia Hewitt: The estimated cost of theft and fraud to (a) the Department, (b) its agencies and (c) NDPBs is as follows:
	
		Theft
		
			 Year £ 
		
		
			 1998 11,267 
			 1999 10,985 
			 2000 5,870 
			 2001 18,782 
		
	
	These figures do not include returns from agencies or NDPBs. The information from agencies will be provided as soon as possible. The DTI does not hold information on thefts within NDPBs.
	The annual fraud returns to the Treasury detailing losses relating to fraud are as follows:
	
		Fraud
		
			 Year £ 
		
		
			 1997–98 2,776 
			 1998–99 56,150 
			 1999–2000 2,589 
			 2000–01 46,461 
		
	
	The Department's agencies and NDPBs are included in these figures.

Postal Deliveries

Russell Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many properties in (a) the United Kingdom, (b) Scotland, and (c) Dumfries and Galloway were exempt from the normal six days a week postal deliveries during the past four years; if she will investigate the reasons for these exemptions; and what action she will take to reduce the number of exemptions.

Douglas Alexander: holding answer 17 January 2002
	The question of exceptions to the universal service is a matter for the postal regulator, the Postal Services Commission (Postcomm). Under the Postal Services Act 2000, Postcomm has the primary duty to ensure the provision of a universal postal service; that is at least one delivery of relevant postal packets is to be made every working day to the home or premises of every individual or other person in the United Kingdom or to such identifiable points for the delivery of relevant postal packets as Postcomm may approve.
	However, the legislation does provide for the possibility that some addresses will receive less than this but only in exceptional circumstances. Such exceptions must be justified and agreed with Postcomm. Under the terms of the European Postal Directive these must also be notified to the European Commission. Since the establishment of the regulatory regime it has become clear that the incidence of exceptions is more widespread than was previously envisaged.
	So, working closely with Postwatch (the postal consumer council), Postcomm is currently formulating a long-term policy on this matter and Postcomm intends to publish a public consultation paper, in the spring, setting out a long-term approach.
	However, in the interim, and to avoid Consignia being in breach of its licence obligations, Postcomm issued a Direction on 23 March 2001 under section 4 of the Postal Services Act 2000 which designated exceptional conditions and circumstances under which Consignia plc was not obliged to comply with the every working day delivery requirement of the universal postal service. That Direction expired on 23 September 2001 and on that date Postcomm issued a second interim Direction (which is still in force). I am placing in the Library of the House a copy of that Direction.
	The Annexe attached to the Direction outlines the geographical exceptions to the Direction. One of these relates only to parcel deliveries. One additional delivery point, was added to the Annexe to the Direction issued on 23 September 2001.
	It is a matter for Postcomm to determine whether or not postal areas fall within any of the other exceptional designations outlined in the Direction.

Postal Deliveries

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will give a breakdown by parliamentary constituency of the number of homes in Scotland from whom Consignia plan to withdraw postal services; and from how many homes in the Angus local authority area Consignia proposes to withdraw postal services.

Douglas Alexander: Consignia would need Postcomm's authorisation to make changes to the way it carries out the universal postal service obligation in Scotland and Postcomm is not aware that Consignia plans to make such changes in Scotland. Subject to Consignia's universal service obligations, the number and timing of deliveries is an operational issue for Consignia.

Postal Deliveries

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions she has had with Consignia regarding their proposal to withdraw postal services from some rural homes in Scotland.

Douglas Alexander: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry has had no discussions with Consignia on this issue. Consignia would need the postal regulator the Postal Services Commission's (Postcomm) authorisation to make changes to the way it carries out the universal postal service obligation in Scotland and Postcomm is not aware that Consignia plans to make such changes in Scotland. Subject to Consignia's universal service obligations, the number and timing of deliveries is an operational issue for Consignia.

Postal Deliveries

Charles Kennedy: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what measures the Government are taking to protect the (a) price and (b) frequency of postal services in remote and rural areas from the pressures resulting from increased competition in delivery of mail, with particular reference to the Highlands of Scotland; and if she will make a statement.

Patricia Hewitt: Under the Postal Services Act 2000 the Postal Services Commission (Postcomm) has the primary duty to ensure the provision of a universal postal service. The obligation consists of a service provided at an affordable price determined by a public tariff uniform throughout the UK and includes the delivery each working day to the home or premises of every individual in the UK and a collection each working day from access points.
	Subject to this primary responsibility, Postcomm is also under a duty to exercise its functions in the manner which it considers is best calculated to further the interest of users of postal services, wherever appropriate, by promoting effective competition between postal operators. In performing this secondary duty Postcomm shall have regard to the interests of, among others, individuals residing in rural areas.
	Currently Postcomm requires Consignia plc, in the licence, to provide a universal postal service. Subject to Consignia's universal service obligations, the number and timing of deliveries is an operational issue for Consignia.
	The prices that Consignia can charge for specific postal services, in particular prices for first and second class postage, are controlled by its licence granted by Postcomm on 23 March 2001. Postcomm is currently in the early stages of reviewing this price control and expects to publish initial proposals this summer.

Postal Deliveries

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many households do not receive a daily post delivery, broken down by postal area; and what measures she plans to take to overcome this.

Douglas Alexander: holding answer 18 January 2002
	I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I have given today to Question 28059 from my hon. Friend the Member for Dumfries (Mr. Brown).

Manufacturing Summit

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list the responses received regarding the Manufacturing Summit of 5 December 2001; and if she will place the responses in the Library.

Brian Wilson: A number of organisations provided written evidence to the Summit and a number of less formal comments were received. I have arranged for copies of the written evidence to be placed in the Libraries of the House.

Departmental Publications

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list the publications issued by her Department in each of the last four years; and what the (a) circulation, (b) cost and (c) purpose of each was.

Patricia Hewitt: A list of those DTI publications produced since 1 December 2000 that have been notified to my Department's Publications Unit has been placed in the Libraries of the House. The listing includes the total cost incurred by the Department in production of each publication (where notified centrally), and excludes publications produced for internal use. For a list of publications published to December 2000, I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Hertsmere (Mr. Clappison) on 12 December 2000, Official Report, column 79W.
	Circulation and purpose varies for each individual title. Information at the required level of detail is not collected centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. However, purposes include: guidance on legislation, informing people on a variety of issues such as consumer protection, and providing information to help small businesses.

Working Practices and Conditions

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many cases of work-related stress have been reported in her Department; how much compensation has been paid to employees; how many work days have been lost due to work-related stress, and at what cost; what procedures have been put in place to reduce work-related stress, and at what cost, in each of the last three years; and if she will make a statement.

Patricia Hewitt: Data on work related stress are not collected separately in my Department. However we are committed to maintaining a safe working environment for staff and to reducing absences caused by any sickness or injury.
	The Department offers an in-house counselling and advice service, with referrals to an outside specialist service where needed, which helps both managers and staff tackle work-related stress. Workshops are held for groups of staff and training is available.

Departmental Investment Measures

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on her Department's preferred measure of investment.

Alan Johnson: The DTI look at total investment and its components, including Government, business and manufacturing investment. The DTI competitiveness indicators publication compares both Government and business investment over time with the other G7 countries, using data sourced from the OECD.

Consignia

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the timescale for the appointment of the new chairman for Consignia.

Douglas Alexander: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Weston-super-Mare (Brian Cotter) on 11 February 2002, Official Report, column 72W.

Manufacturing Industry

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations she has received from the manufacturing industry on the effect of the level of the pound against the euro since 1997; and if she will make a statement.

Brian Wilson: I and my ministerial colleagues understand the difficulties that the weakness of the euro and the slowdown in the world economy are causing for British industry, particularly manufacturing. We often receive representations from manufacturers on a wide range of issues, including those relating to the euro, and we value their insights.

Manufacturing Industry

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the future of manufacturing industry.

Brian Wilson: The stable macro-economic framework we have established—together with our policies to promote the spread of best practice, encourage innovation, raise skills levels and improve the transfer of ideas from the science base—are the best way to ensure the future competitiveness of the UK's manufacturing industry.

Combined Heat and Power

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps she is taking to ensure that the Government's CHP target is reflected in her Department's aims and objectives on sustainable development; and when she intends to issue them to the non-ministerial Government Departments for which she is responsible.

Brian Wilson: I believe the question is referring to guidelines on sustainable development and I should say that my Department has not issued any such guidelines. However, the DTI's Sustainable Development Strategy was published in October 2000 and is available on the DTI website. The Government remain committed to supporting CHP and my Department is working with colleagues in DEFRA and industry to improve the economic conditions for CHP and we are actively contributing to the development of the Government's CHP strategy.

New Electricity Trading Arrangements

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the extent to which the new electricity trading arrangements are encouraging for combined heat and power and renewables.

Brian Wilson: Ofgem's Report to DTI on the Review of the Initial Impact of NETA on Smaller Generators issued on 31 August 2001, indicated that prices for the export of power from smaller generators had reduced by around 17 per cent. since the introduction of NETA. Ofgem also found export volumes reduced by 44 per cent. compared to a year previously. Ofgem suggested the lower export prices for electricity were one factor, but that higher costs (especially gas prices) may also have contributed.
	The Government believe that NETA should form part of its longer-term aim for encouraging a move towards a more cost-reflective and efficient system within which the benefits of embedded generation are recognised.
	On 1 November 2001, I issued a consultation document in response to Ofgem's reports 'The New Electricity Trading Arrangements—Review of the First Three Months' and 'Report to the DTI on the Review of the Initial Impact of NETA on Smaller Generators' of 31 August 2001. This consultation closed on 1 December 2001.
	The Government's key proposals are, broadly,
	To ensure imbalance prices are genuinely cost reflective; and
	To ensure that effective consolidation services emerge.
	The Government are carefully considering responses on the proposals set out in their consultation document and will be issuing a response shortly.

City of London Corporation (Events)

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list the functions, engagements and events which Ministers, her officials and advisers have attended which have been sponsored, funded, promoted and hosted by the City of London Corporation since 1997.

Patricia Hewitt: This information is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Arthur Andersen/Accenture

Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which partners or senior employees of (a) Andersen, (b) Arthur Andersen, (c) Andersen Consulting and (d) Accenture have been appointed to (i) informal roles giving advice to the Department of Trade and Industry, (ii) task forces reporting to the Department of Trade and Industry, (iii) ad hoc advisory groups reporting to the Department of Trade and Industry and (iv) other formal roles reporting to Department of Trade and Industry Ministers since 1997; and if she will make a statement.

Patricia Hewitt: Information on the number, remit and membership of taskforces, ad hoc advisory groups and reviews has been published by the Cabinet Office on a regular basis. The first report was published on 11 January 2000 and gives information for the period between 1 May 1997 to 31 October 1999. A second report was published on 27 July 2000, and covered the period 1 November 1999 to 30 April 2000. A third report was published on 13 December 2000 covering the period 1 May 2000 to 31 October 2000. The most recent report: "Task Forces, Ad Hoc Advisory Groups and Reviews", issued in October 2001, covers the period of the financial year 2000–2001. Copies of these reports have been placed in the Libraries of the House.
	The Department has numerous informal contacts with its stakeholders at different levels.

Sellafield

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which radioactive materials are held in B30 nuclear waste storage ponds at Sellafield.

Brian Wilson: I understand from the company that the pond currently holds unreprocessed used nuclear fuel residues, and intermediate level waste in the form of sludges and various solid wastes.

European Fusion Development Scheme

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much the UK has given to the European fusion development scheme in the past 10 years; and what the UK's financial commitment to EFDA is in the next 10 years.

Brian Wilson: The European Fusion Development Agreement (EFDA) began in 1999. Over the four-year period 1999–2002 the UK's direct contribution to EFDA activities is projected to be £23 million. In this period 1999–2002, European income to the UK under EFDA for facility operation and research is likely to be £104 million.
	The budget for EFDA in the next Framework Programme (2003–06) is still under discussion and hence no commitment has yet been made.

Pakistan (Imports)

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry for what reason the UK has chosen to give Pakistan a duty free assistance package rather than offering aid to Pakistan in the form of cash grants.

Brian Wilson: The decision by the EU to give Pakistan duty free assistance was part of a package of measures that also included a renewed EC-Pakistan Co-operation Agreement and economic assistance in the form of euro 50 million in development aid in 2002. The whole package was given in response to the exceptional economic and political circumstances faced by Pakistan as a result of its support for the coalition against terrorism following the events of 11 September.

Pakistan (Imports)

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how the duty free access for finished goods originating from Pakistan will be controlled to ensure that Pakistan improves (a) working conditions, (b) environmental controls and (c) human rights.

Brian Wilson: Pakistan will have duty free access for many products as a drugs regime country under the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP). This regime has comprehensive monitoring and evaluation criteria covering social development and environmental policy. Annual reports will be considered by the GSP Committee, and the European Commission will undertake a general review at end of 2004. In addition, there are provisions to withdraw any GSP country's benefits in the event of serious problems in a variety of areas, such as fraud, inadequate drug controls, human rights abuses, and labour rights violations.

Pakistan (Imports)

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment she has made of the number of jobs that will be lost in the UK following the decisions by the Government and the European Union to allow duty free access for finished goods originating from Pakistan.

Brian Wilson: An assessment carried out by my officials last October suggests that the impact of the EU decision to offer duty-free access to Pakistan for made up textiles and clothing is likely to be modest but that it is not possible to say precisely how many jobs will be affected. One reason for this is because any resulting increase in exports from Pakistan will represent at most about a 1 per cent. increase in the value of overall supply of clothing and textiles to the EU market. A second reason is that increased exports from Pakistan are in many instances likely to displace exports from other third country suppliers

Pakistan (Imports)

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment she has made of the level of imports of cloth from Indonesia and China sent via Pakistan to be made into apparel goods in order to avoid the duty payable if the cloth had been imported direct to the UK.

Brian Wilson: No assessment has been made of the level of imports of cloth from Indonesia and China sent via Pakistan to be made into apparel goods as such goods will remain liable to full duty on entry to the UK.

Union Duties

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many staff in her Department, agencies and non-departmental public bodies receive paid leave to undertake union duties; how many days they are allocated; and what has been the cost to public funds in each of the last four years.

Patricia Hewitt: The cost for my Department and its agencies for the last four years for which figures are available (financial years 1995–96 to 1998–99) was £77,000; £49,000; £44,500 and £59,000, respectively. Information about staff numbers and time allocated is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	Information for non-departmental public bodies is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Steel Industry

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the balance of trade was in steel in each of the last five years for which figures are available; and what the main contribution of origin of steel imports were by volume.

Brian Wilson: The information is given in the following tables:
	
		UK balance of trade in steel 1996 to 2000
		
			 Year  Tonnes 000 
		
		
			 1996 2,814 
			 1997 2,662 
			 1998 815 
			 1999 835 
			 2000 185 
		
	
	
		UK imports of steel 1996 to 2000—top five sources -- Tonnes 000
		
			 Countries 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 
		
		
			 Germany 1,514 1,518 1,394 1,394 1,455 
			 France 738 824 893 864 740 
			 Belgium(71) 579 686 698 661 698 
			 Sweden 526 454 577 524 588 
			 Spain 397 348 384 385 435 
		
	
	(71) Data for Belgium include imports from Luxembourg in years 1996–98
	Source:
	Iron and Steel Statistics Bureau.

Steel Industry

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what her assessment is of the effects of stage 1 and stage 2 enlargement of the European Union on the British steel industry.

Brian Wilson: Enlargement of the European Union will strengthen its position in the global market and provide excellent opportunities to increase trade.
	It is important that applicant countries, particularly in the first wave of enlargement, move towards a market orientated economy as quickly as possible. It is vital that they bring their competition and state aid regimes into line with other member states to ensure a level playing field is created and we support the Commission's efforts to achieve this. In this context, there has undoubtedly been much progress in reducing subsidies and introducing privatisation and restructuring in the steel industry in the first and second wave applicant countries.

Steel Industry

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether her Department was consulted as to the effect of LNM Holdings acquisition of the Sidex Plant in Romania on the British steel industry.

Patricia Hewitt: My Department's position on the privatisation of Romanian steel plants is well established. We have for some time supported the interests of the British steel industry by encouraging the completion of privatisation in order to eliminate state subsidies and create a level playing field for British companies.

Industrial Action

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many days have been lost owing to industrial action by staff in her Department, agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each of the last four years.

Patricia Hewitt: None in my Department or its agencies. Information on non-departmental public bodies is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Ministerial Boxes

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry by what means ministerial boxes are conveyed from private offices in her Department to (a) herself and (b) her Ministers; how frequently and at what expense private courier firms are employed for such a task; and which courier firms have been used for such duties.

Patricia Hewitt: Ministerial boxes originating from this Department are transported to Ministers' homes either by Government car or by a service provided by the Royal Mail. In exceptional circumstances the departmental contracted courier service has been used to deliver urgent papers but this is not routine practice.

Regulatory Impact Assessments

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether a regulatory impact assessment, which adheres to the Cabinet Office model, has been published for the Work and Parents Framework documents and latest consultation document.

Alan Johnson: The regulatory impact assessment carried out for the current Employment Bill contains figures relating to maternity, paternity, adoption and the flexible working provisions. Copies of this are available from the Libraries of the House.
	It is likely that a revised regulatory impact assessment will be available in the next few days. Copies of the updated version will also be available from the Libraries of the House.

Parental and Maternity Leave

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent legislation has been introduced on the provision of parental and maternity leave and pay with particular reference to returning to work part-time.

Alan Johnson: There are no provisions in parental and maternity leave and pay legislation which specifically cover return to work on a part-time basis. Existing legislation provides for the rights of an employee (whether full-time or part-time) to return either to the same job in which he/she was employed before taking leave or, in certain circumstances, to an alternative job which is suitable and appropriate.
	A new duty on employers to seriously consider requests for flexible working, including part-time working, from parents with young children is being introduced as part of the Employment Bill which is currently going through Parliament.

Inward Investment Projects (North East)

Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the value of inward investment projects into the North East was in each year since 1996.

Patricia Hewitt: The figures in the table are based on information provided by companies at the time of the announcement of the decision to invest in the UK. They are based on the companies' best estimate, at that time, of the number of jobs associated with each investment.
	There is no requirement on companies to notify inward investment decisions to Invest.UK and so the figures include only those projects where Invest.UK or its regional partners were involved or which have come to their notice. They are therefore likely to be an under- estimate. Invest.UK is not always given financial information relating to inward investment decisions and therefore such information is not provided, as it is incomplete and would give a distorted impression against the number of projects for each year.
	The UK is the No. 1 location in Europe for inward investment and the Government will continue to do all they can to maintain the UK's attractiveness as a location so our economy can continue to enjoy the substantial benefits from inward investment.
	
		Successes in the North East
		
			   Number of projects Number of associated jobs 
		
		
			 1996–97 46 7,618 
			 1997–98 48 12,654 
			 1998–99 35 9,257 
			 1999–2000 49 11,910 
			 2000–01 38 7,959

Free Eye Test

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many employees in her Department who regularly use computers have taken up the provision of a free eye test; and how this service is advertised to (a) current and (b) new staff.

Patricia Hewitt: Five hundred and eight (508) staff have taken up the provision of a free eye test within the last two years. Staff who regularly use computers are entitled to a free eye test every two years, unless an optician recommends more frequent testing. The service has been brought to the attention of current staff through the distribution of a health and safety notice. A reference copy of the notice is also available on the Department's intranet. Guidance on the use of display screen equipment and the entitlement to a free eye test forms a part of the health and safety induction procedures for new staff.

Oil and Gas Directorate Posts

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many oil and gas directorate posts there were in (a) Aberdeen, (b) London and (c) elsewhere in each of the last 15 years; and what the running costs for the oil and gas directorate were in total and by location in the most recent years for which figures are available.

Brian Wilson: The number of oil and gas directorate posts located in Aberdeen, London and elsewhere since the establishment of the Aberdeen office in 1994, together with associated running costs was as follows:
	
		£000 
		
			  Aberdeen London Elsewhere Running costs 
		
		
			 1994 4.1 118.5 0 6,560 
			 1995 44.2 120.8 0 7,582 
			 1996 45.5 118.9 0 7,425 
			 1997 53.6 105 0 6,709 
			 1998 56.3 102.3 0 7,060 
			 1999 60.3 99.3 0 7,158 
			 2000 72.3 103.8 0 8,409 
			 2001 84.5 96.6 0 9,961 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Running costs expenditure is not recorded on the basis of the location of the office. A breakdown of the costs between Aberdeen and London is not therefore available.
	2. There have been some changes in the functions of Oil and Gas Directorate over this period. For example, responsibility for the collection of oil and gas royalties was transferred to the Inland Revenue in 2000, leading to 14 posts transferring from Oil and Gas Directorate's Aberdeen office to the Inland Revenue's Aberdeen office.

Energy and Lobbying Companies

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to her answer of 11 February 2002, Official Report, column 63W, on meetings with energy companies and lobbying companies, what criteria she uses to decide whether to place records of his meetings in the public domain; and if she will make a statement.

Patricia Hewitt: The criteria are set out in the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information. I have no plans to make a statement.

Public Private Partnerships

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which public private partnerships with a capital value in excess of £1 million are under negotiation by her Department; and if she will make a statement.

Patricia Hewitt: There are no PPP contracts currently under negotiation in my Department.

TRIPS Agreement

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  what plans the Government have to propose revisions to the TRIPS agreement regarding the patenting of staple food crops under WTO rules;
	(2)  what representations she has made to the World Trade Organisation regarding the TRIPS agreement in relation to the patenting of staple food crops; and if she will make a statement.

Patricia Hewitt: The TRIPS agreement confirms the established principle that it is not possible to be granted a valid patent for something which is already known. According to this principle, neither naturally occurring genetic resources as they exist in the natural environment, nor related traditional knowledge can constitute patentable matters in themselves. Genetic resources such as staple food crops can serve as a basis from which inventions may be developed. Those inventions may be subject to intellectual property rights, and in particular patents.
	With the UK's agreement and that of our EU partner, the European Commission presented a communication to the TRIPS Council dated in April 2001 concerning the two most relevant international agreements in this field: the TRIPS agreement and the Convention on Biological Diversity. The document bears World Trade Organisation reference IP/C/W/254 and a copy is available in the Libraries of the House.
	This communication highlights the role of patents in encouraging and protecting technical inventions based on genetic resources, and invites all WTO Members to bring forward proposals to address their specific concerns.
	In addition to the World Trade Organisation, issues concerning intellectual property rights and access to genetic resources, including staple food crops, are also under discussion in an Intergovernmental Committee set up by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). The Government have also set up a Commission on Intellectual Property Rights to look at how intellectual property rights can work better for poor people and developing countries. It is due to report to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Development in June.
	Any plans to propose revision of the TRIPS agreement will depend on the outcome of these activities.

Liabilities Management Authority

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what liaison her Department's Liabilities Management Unit has with the ALFA Group within BNFL.

Brian Wilson: When established, I expect the Department's Liabilities Management Unit (LMU) and the ALFA Group within BNFL to have a close working relationship. One of the LMU's roles will be to monitor BNFL's performance and the ALFA Group will be the LMU's main contact point within BNFL. I expect the two bodies to work together to develop new measures and approaches aimed at improving BNFL's performance as a liabilities manager and delivering the sharper focus on clean up which the Government wish to achieve.

Liabilities Management Authority

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she plans to transfer the UK Atomic Energy Authority laboratories at Sellafield to the new Liabilities Management Authority.

Brian Wilson: As my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry indicated in her statement to the House on 28 November 2001, the Liabilities Management Authority will be responsible for all public sector civil nuclear liabilities. This will include all of the UK Atomic Energy Authority's liabilities including those at Windscale (adjacent to Sellafield).

Liabilities Management Authority

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether current contracts for Thorp and SMP at Sellafield will be made public as part of the transparency process in setting up the Liabilities Management Authority.

Brian Wilson: The contracts between BNFL and its customers for Thorp and SMP are commercially confidential.

Liabilities Management Authority

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps her Department has taken to recruit a director for the Liabilities Management Authority.

Brian Wilson: The Liabilities Management Authority will be established by legislation. No action will be taken to recruit a Director for the Authority until the founding legislation has been scrutinised by Parliament and has passed Second Reading in the House of Commons.

Liabilities Management Authority

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps she has taken to establish an embryonic board for the Liabilities Management Authority.

Brian Wilson: The Liabilities Management Authority will be established by legislation. No action will be taken to recruit board members for the Authority until the founding legislation has been scrutinised by Parliament and has passed Second Reading in the House of Commons.

Liabilities Management Authority

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what resources have been committed by her Department to the establishment and development of the New Liabilities Management Unit.

Brian Wilson: My officials have had discussions with BNFL about working relationships between the Liabilities Management Unit (LMU) and the company and action is in hand to recruit senior staff and to appoint a partner contractor with top quality technical, operational and strategic management skills. As yet, however, no decision has been taken about the overall composition of the LMU or its budget.

Liabilities Management Authority

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether the shadow Liabilities Management agency will be covered by the rules governing non- departmental public bodies.

Brian Wilson: I assume that my hon. Friend is referring to the Liabilities Management Unit which is currently being set up.
	My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry indicated in her statement to the House on 28 November 2001 that DTI would strengthen its existing capacity for overseeing work on the nuclear legacy prior to the creation of the Liabilities Management Authority. The Department is creating a Liabilities Management Unit to play this role.
	The Unit will be part of the Department and, therefore, not covered by the rules governing non-departmental public bodies.

Liabilities Management Authority

Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on her Department's liabilities management unit with specific reference to (a) its role, (b) its level of staff, (c) its annual budget and (d) the expected length of its existence.

Brian Wilson: The Department's Liabilities Management Unit (LMU) is in the process of being established. Action is in hand to recruit senior staff and to appoint a partner contractor with top quality technical, operational and strategic management skills. As yet, however, no decision has been taken about the overall composition of the LMU or its budget.
	The LMU is intended to strengthen DTI's capacity for overseeing work on the nuclear legacy prior to the creation of the proposed Liabilities Management Authority (LMA). This includes, in particular, acquiring a more detailed knowledge of BNFL liabilities and working with BNFL to develop measures for monitoring BNFL's performance as a liabilities manager.
	We envisage that the LMU will be wound up once the LMA is operational.

Imported Equipment

Colin Pickthall: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what measures her Department takes to detect imported equipment which is sold as British- made.

Patricia Hewitt: It is an offence under the Trade Descriptions Act 1968 to describe goods in a false or misleading way as to their origin. The Act also prohibits the importation of goods falsely marked as to their origin. Local authority trading standards officers have the powers to investigate and where necessary prosecute offences under the Act. The prohibition on importation is enforced by HM Customs and Excise at ports of entry.

Regional Development

Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many businesses the RDA helped to set up in (a) Somerset and (b) the South West region in 1999–2000.

Alan Johnson: The RDA has no direct delivery role in relation to business start-ups. It does, however, have a strategic role in creating an environment where businesses can start, survive and grow in the region. The Agency works with regional public and private sector partners, including the Small Business Service and Business Links, developing collaborative networks to integrate the work of all those agencies that provide support to business in the region.

BNFL

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether the issue of the insolvency of BNFL was discussed at the meeting of the Energy Minister with Hugh Collum and Norman Askew on 15 November 2001.

Brian Wilson: I meet Hugh Collum and Norman Askew regularly to discuss a range of issues, including financial issues, relating to BNFL.

Combined Cycle Gas Turbine Power Stations

John Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to her answer of 30 January 2002, Official Report, column 389W, on CCGT power stations, how she intends to discharge her responsibilities on power stations under sections 34 and 35 of the Electricity Act 1989.

Brian Wilson: Sections 34 and 35 of the Electricity Act allow my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry to issue various directions to power station operators and transmission companies. This would generally be in preparation for, or for the possibility of an emergency in generation, distribution or supply. The directions may include demanding information on stocks or making contingency arrangements for certain fuels and materials and how they are used. The choices would depend on the circumstances at the time.
	The Department will shortly be reviewing the emergency arrangements for electricity. All consultation papers etc. will be available on the DTI website throughout the period of the review—www.dti.gov.uk/energy.

Departmental Staff

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many staff left the service of her Department and its agencies in the year ended 31 March 2001; how many left before attaining the formal retirement age of 60 years; and in respect of how many her Department and its agencies assumed responsibilities for making payments until retirement age.

Patricia Hewitt: 912 staff left the Department and its Agencies in the year ended 31 March 2001. 804 staff left before attaining the formal retirement age of 60 years and the Department and its Agencies assumed responsibility for making payments until retirement age for 25 staff.
	This answer covers DTI headquarters and the Insolvency Service Agency, the National Weights and Measures Laboratory, Employment Tribunal Service, Patents Office, Radiocommunications Agency, ACAS and Companies House Agency.

Departmental Overseas Visits

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many overseas visits have been undertaken by parliamentary private secretaries in her Department at departmental expense in each of the last four years; and at what cost to public funds.

Patricia Hewitt: Parliamentary private secretaries supporting Ministers in this Department have travelled overseas on Government business on one occasion at a total cost of £6,184. All travel complied with the requirements of the Ministerial Code.

UK Coal Operating Aid Scheme

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry in relation to the UK Coal Operating Aid Scheme, how much aid was paid to coal producers (a) for each mine and (b) on a £/per tonne basis in (i) 2000 and (ii) 2001; what determinations were made by the Import Parity Price Panel in (A) 2000 and (B) 2002; and whether any members of the Panel did not take part in an individual determination owing to a conflict of interest.

Brian Wilson: The table at annexe A details the total payments made under the UK Coal Operating Aid Scheme, by colliery and on a £/tce (tonnes of coal equivalent) basis.
	Payments have been made in respect of two tranches: Tranche 1 (17 April 2000 to 31 December 2000) and Tranche 2 (1 January 2001 to 31 December 2001).
	The Import Parity Price Panel has given advice on IPPs for contracts relating to Tranche 1 applications under the UK Coal Operating Aid Scheme. A summary of this advice is given in the table at annex B. No advice has yet been submitted in relation to Tranches 2 and 3.
	David Brewer, having declared an interest, did not participate in the IPP determinations for Moorside Mining Co. Ltd. (Eckington Colliery).
	
		
			   Year 2000  Year 2001  
			 Colliery Total Aid (£) £/tce(72),(73) Total Aid (£) £/tce(72),(73) 
		
		
			 Anthracite Mining Ltd. (Aberpergwm Colliery) 0  1,031,000 15.4 
			 Betws Anthracite Ltd. (Betws Colliery) 870,200 41.4 1,966,000 51.7 
			 Blenkinsopp Colliery Ltd. (Blenkinsopp Colliery) 470,500 3.7 1,168,000 7.2 
			 Celtic Energy Ltd. (East Pit Extension) 2,977,500 24.8 0 — 
			 Coalpower Ltd. (Hatfield Colliery) 0 — 951,750 — 
			 Ffynonau Duon Mines Ltd. (Blaentillery N#2) 112,800 10.6 217,000 19.2 
			 Hatfield Coal Company Ltd. (Hatfield Colliery) 3,931,900 19.4 2,855,250 7.7 
			 HJ Banks (Central Mines) 661,100 3.4 0 — 
			 HJ Banks (North East Mines) 703,200 5 0 — 
			 J Flack and Sons (Hay Royds Colliery) 78,900 4 264,000 8 
			 Mining (Scotland) Ltd. (Longannet Mine) 19,652,800 50.9 21,525,000 23.4 
			 Moorside Mining Ltd. (Eckington Colliery) 88,200 5.04 286,000 10.25 
			 Tower Colliery Ltd. (Tower Colliery) 3,317,200 8.3 0 — 
			 UK Coal (Rossington Colliery) 3,207,200 8.44 0 — 
			 UK Coal Plc. (Harworth Colliery) 14,722,100 27.7 0 — 
			 UK Coal Plc. (Maltby Colliery) 13,559,700 21.7 0 — 
			 UK Coal Plc. (Selby Complex) 23,186,500 8.4 20,324,500 5.1 
		
	
	(72) For the purpose of this table, one tce (tonnes of coal equivalent)= 29.302GJ
	(73) In 1999 prices
	
		Summary of Panel's Advice on IPPs
		
			  Contract reference  Purchaser Business(74)  Purchaser Region(75) Date contract entered into (dd/mm/yy) Calorific value (GJ/tonne) Sulphur content (percentage) Total volume of contract (000 tonnes)  Duration of contract (mm/yy to mm/yy)  IPP pence/GJ 
		
		
			 00–01 Industrial Heating Yorkshire/ Humber 31 January 2000 25.38 1.24 2.6 February 2000 to January 2002 101 
			 00–02 Public Authority Yorkshire/Humber 31 February 2000 28.4 1.2 5.00 March 2000 to February 2001 144 
			 00–03 Cement Producer North West 16 February 2000 31.17 1.18 240 to 300 July 2000 to June 2002 97 
			 00–04 Industrial Process East Midlands 27 March 2000 28.39 1.27 0.9 April 2000 to March 2001 154 
			 00–05 Coal Producer Yorkshire/Humber 31 March 2000 26.1 2.0 5.6 April 2000 to September 2000 103 
			 00–06 Transport Wales 5 April 2000 28.80 1.10 0.1 March 2000 to February 2002 217 
			 00–07 Industrial Heating Yorkshire/ Humber 20 April 2000 28.39 1.27 4.3 May 2000 to April 2003 132 
			 00–08 Industrial Heating East Midlands 12 May 2000 28.39 1.27 0.3 April 2000 to March 2001 146 
			 00–09 Transport South West 15 May 2000 28.80 1.10 0.4 April 2000 to March 2001 198 
			 00–10 Public Authority East Midlands 2 June 2000 26.0 1.2 1.50 July 2000 to June 2001 115 
			 00–11 Industrial Heating Yorkshire/Humber 2 June 2000 28.4 1.2 0.05 July 2000 to June 2001 142 
			 00–12 Industrial Heating Yorkshire/Humber 2 June 2000 28.4 1.2 0.03 July 2000 to June 2001 142 
			 00–13 Public Authority Yorkshire/Humber 2 June 2000 28.39 1.27 1.5 July 2000 to June 2001 149 
			 00–14 Public Authority Yorkshire/Humber 2 June 2000 28.39 1.27 1.6 July 2000 to June 2001 152 
			 00–15 Industrial Heating Yorkshire/Humber 27 June 2000 28.39 1.27 0.7 July 2000 to June 2001 128 
			 00–16 Public Authority East Midlands 22 August 2000 28.39 1.27 5.0 September 2000 to August 2002 149 
			 00–17 Industrial Heating Yorkshire/Humber 1 September 2000 28.39 1.27 1.0 October 2000 to September 2001 140 
			 00–18 Briqueting Wales 5 September 2000 29.5 (77)1.0 20 September 2000 to August 2001 146 
			 00–19 Energy Trader Yorkshire/Humber 15 September 2000 24.10 (74)1.20 330 November 2000 to March 2001 113 
			 00–20 Briquetting Wales 26 September 2000 30 n/a 5 September 2000 to August 2001 143 
			 00–21 Quarrying East Midlands 9 October 2000 31.17 1.18 80 to 110 November 2000 to October 2002 125.5 
			 00–22 Generator East Midlands 19 October 2000 25.8 2.0 20 September 2000 to March 2001 96 
			 00–23 Generator Wales 10 November 2000 25 0.9 48.4 November 2000 to March 2001 95 
			 00–24 Briquetting North East 17 December 2000 30 (77)1.0 20 to 40 April 2000 to March 2001 104 
		
	
	Notes:
	(74) Business of purchaser to be recorded in generic terms: e.g. generator, coke manufacturer, industrial heating, steel production.
	(75) Region of purchaser should be one of the nine English regions as used by Government Offices/RDAs (North West, North East, Yorkshire and the Humber, East Midlands, East of England, West Midlands, South East, South West, London), Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland or Other.
	(76) Maximum.
	(77) Greater than.

Nuclear Clean-up

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what expenditure she incurred on the decommissioning, management and clean-up of nuclear materials, equipment and facilities in each year since 1997; and how much she expects to spend in this financial year.

Brian Wilson: Expenditure on the Department's decommissioning and radioactive waste management programme is incurred by way of grant to the UK Atomic Energy Authority.
	
		£ million 
		
			  UKAEA nuclear decommissioning 
		
		
			 1997–98 162.2 
			 1998–99 256.9 
			 1999–2000 183.5 
			 2000–01 219.9 
			 2001–02(78) 262.5 
		
	
	(78) Planned
	Note:
	All figures in cash of year

Environmental Accounting Guidelines

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps she has taken to implement the EU recommendation on environmental accounting guidelines.

Brian Wilson: The recommendation from the European Commission concerns specific environmental expenditure disclosures in company annual accounts. We have promoted it by asking the accountancy profession, business organisations (including the banking sector) and others to encourage their clients and member companies to take account of the recommendation in the preparation of their financial statements.
	In addition, my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister recently challenged the top 350 companies to produce Environmental Reports and the DTI/DEFRA also launched Guidelines on Environmental Reporting with the CBI last year.

Miners' Compensation

Shaun Woodward: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many home visits for medical assessment purposes to former miners have been conducted in (a) St. Helens, South, (b) Merseyside, (c) the north-west, (d) England, (e) Scotland and (f) Wales for (i) vibration white finger and (ii) respiratory diseases.

Brian Wilson: The number of domiciliary visits undertaken in those regions is as follows:
	
		
			  Number of vibration white finger domiciliary visits Number of respiratory disease domiciliary visits 
		
		
			 (a) St. Helens South 1 15 
			 (b) Merseyside 5 33 
			 (c) North-west 28 173 
			 (d) England 201 1,815 
			 (e) Scotland 48 389 
			 (f) Wales 63 982

Miners' Compensation

Shaun Woodward: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many former miners' compensation claims for (a) respiratory disease and (b) vibration white finger have been prioritised in (i) St. Helens, South, (ii) Merseyside, (iii) the north-west, (iv) England, (v) Scotland and (vi) Wales.

Brian Wilson: The number of high priority respiratory disease claimants who have been prioritised and medically assessed is as follows:
	
		
			 Region Number 
		
		
			 St. Helens, South 46 
			 Merseyside 129 
			 North-west 591 
			 England 7,278 
			 Scotland 871 
			 Wales 3,400 
		
	
	The Department is unable, in the time given, to provide a breakdown of prioritised priority vibration white finger, VWF, claims. However, GB-wide, 346 claimants have been prioritised and received domiciliary visits.

Miners' Compensation

Shaun Woodward: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate the Government have made of the number of claims for (a) vibration white finger and (b) respiratory diseases for (i) former miners, (ii) widows of former miners and (iii) other eligible estate claims for former miners in (A) St. Helens South, (B) Merseyside, (C) the north-west, (D) England, (E) Scotland and (F) Wales.

Brian Wilson: The Department has received nationally 177,000 claims in respect of respiratory disease and 135,000 in relation to vibration white finger, VWF. The Department continues to receive over 600 new respiratory disease claims and over 360 new VWF claims per week. As such, the Department is unable to provide an estimate of the number of claims to be received on either scheme.

Miners' Compensation

Shaun Woodward: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the average waiting time has been for former miners for an appointment for a medical assessment for (a) respiratory disease and (b) vibration white finger in (i) north-west England, (ii) Scotland and (iii) Wales in the last 12 months.

Brian Wilson: Claims are being processed according to priority as set out in the handling agreement. The average waiting time between completion of medical records recovery and an appointment to undergo a medical assessment is as follows:
	
		(a) Respiratory disease
		
			   Average waiting time in days  
			  (i) North-west (ii) Scotland (iii) Wales 
		
		
			 Live cases 76 48 123 
			 Deceased cases 39 56 52 
		
	
	
		(b) Vibration white finger
		
			  (i) North-west (ii) Scotland (iii) Wales 
		
		
			 Average waiting time in days 86 47 53

Miners' Compensation

Shaun Woodward: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many new claims were lodged by former miners for (a) vibration white finger and (b) respiratory diseases by month throughout 2001, in (i) St. Helens, South, (ii) Merseyside, (iii) the north-west, (iv) England, (v) Scotland and (vi) Wales.

Brian Wilson: New claims were registered as follows:
	
		Regional breakdown of number of new claims for vibration white finger
		
			 2001  St. Helens, South Merseyside North-west England Scotland Wales 
		
		
			 January 1 8 46 812 47 56 
			 February 3 10 30 723 24 84 
			 March 8 14 63 1,574 39 104 
			 April 2 35 132 1,763 112 128 
			 May 2 6 31 1,370 91 89 
			 June 1 14 50 1,323 80 108 
			 July 2 15 64 1,398 93 95 
			 August 1 8 37 1,255 49 76 
			 September 2 16 59 1,068 55 103 
			 October 6 23 71 1,544 173 195 
			 November 11 37 107 2,183 138 95 
			 December 8 22 61 1,108 93 75 
		
	
	
		Regional breakdown of number of new claims for respiratory disease
		
			 2001  St. Helens, South Merseyside North-west England Scotland Wales 
		
		
			 January 14 29 115 3,783 341 906 
			 February 15 49 114 2,485 271 768 
			 March 15 52 187 3,658 217 1,280 
			 April 27 62 156 2,461 188 480 
			 May 21 54 152 2,972 365 659 
			 June 11 33 114 3,551 245 278 
			 July 14 32 145 3,088 259 274 
			 August 13 34 152 2,629 183 328 
			 September 14 46 146 3,074 193 409 
			 October 32 103 339 3,544 184 503 
			 November 50 136 343 2,379 227 279 
			 December 19 63 161 1,637 151 169

Miners' Compensation

Shaun Woodward: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many expedited payments were made to former miners with respiratory diseases in (a) St. Helens, South, (b) Merseyside, (c) the north-west, (d) England, (e) Scotland and (f) Wales; and what the average expedited payment award was in each case.

Brian Wilson: The number and average expedited payments were made in the above regions as follows:
	
		
			 Region Number of expedited payments Average payment £ 
		
		
			 (a) St. Helens, South 40 3,978 
			 (b) Merseyside 146 4,464 
			 (c) North-west 674 4,523 
			 (d) England 8,661 4,117 
			 (e) Scotland 943 4,424 
			 (f) Wales 1,201 3,630

Miners' Compensation

Shaun Woodward: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many former miners pursuing compensation claims have had a medical assessment for (a) respiratory diseases and (b) vibration white finger in (i) St. Helens, South (ii) Merseyside, (iii) the north-west, (iv) England, (v) Scotland and (vi) Wales.

Brian Wilson: The number of miners who have attended an appointment to undergo the medical assessment is as follows:
	
		
			  Number of miners(79) Number of miners(80) 
		
		
			 St. Helens, South 330 207 
			 Merseyside 790 681 
			 north-west 3,234 2,328 
			 England 37,055 62,326 
			 Scotland 7,326 4,069 
			 Wales 17,945 8,814 
		
	
	(79) Who have attended a respiratory disease medical assessment
	(80) Who have attended a Vibration White Finger medical assessment

Miners' Compensation

Kevin Barron: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much has been paid to claimants through each of the top 10 claims handlers involved in the compensation claims for (a) chronic bronchitis and emphysema and (b) vibration white finger of former coalminers.

Brian Wilson: The amount paid to claimants through each of the top 10 claims handlers for respiratory disease and Vibration White Finger is as follows.
	
		(£ million) 
		
			 Solicitor Total damages paid 
		
		
			 Respiratory Disease  
			 Thompsons 62.2 
			 Hugh James Ford Simey 47.6 
			 Union of Democratic Mineworkers 16.1 
			 Raleys 27.4 
			 Mark Gilbert Morse 4.3 
			 Browell Smith & Co 20.9 
			 Graysons 10.1 
			 Watson Burton 7.2 
			 Irwin Mitchells 12.4 
			 Randell Saunders 3.3 
			 Total 211.3 
			   
			 Vibration White Finger  
			 Thompsons 70.1 
			 Browell Smith & Co 40.5 
			 Union of Democratic Mineworkers 43.8 
			 Raleys 28.5 
			 Hugh James Ford Simey 28.6 
			 Graysons 22.0 
			 Moss 14.2 
			 Watson Burton 23.1 
			 AMS Law 12.8 
			 Towells 16.6 
			 Total 300.4

Inward Investment

Shaun Woodward: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many jobs were (a) created and (b) safeguarded; and how many projects were completed as a result of inward investment in (i) the UK and (ii) the areas covered by the regional development agencies over the last five years.

Nigel Griffiths: The UK is the No. 1 location in the EU for inward investment and the Government will continue to do all they can to maintain the UK's attractiveness as a location so our economy can continue to enjoy the substantial benefits from inward investment.
	There is no requirement on companies to notify inward investment decisions to Invest.UK and so the figures include only those projects where Invest.UK or its regional partners were involved or which have come to their notice. They are therefore likely to be an underestimate.
	
		
			  Number of:  
			 Region projects new jobs safeguarded jobs 
		
		
			 1996–97
			 UK 497 46,400 51,939 
			 English RDAs 352 21,940 44,544 
			 
			 1997–98
			 UK 631 46,562 82,771 
			 English RDAs 477 30,541 73,007 
			 
			 1998–99
			 UK 668 45,147 75,523 
			 English RDAs 534 29,824 70,792 
			 
			 1999–2000
			 UK 799 54,335 81,587 
			 English RDAs 657 37,093 73,146 
			   
			 2000–01
			 UK 884 71,585 52,358 
			 English RDAs 751 52,885 45,385 
		
	
	Note:
	1. All figures are revised from those published in Invest.UK Annual Reports.
	2. The figures in the table above are based on information provided by companies at the time of the announcement of the decision to invest in the UK. They are based on the company's best estimate, at that time, of the number of jobs associated with each investment.
	Source:
	Invest.UK Database.

Employment Rights Act

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether section 51 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 has been used; and if she will make a statement about its purpose.

Alan Johnson: Six applications to employment tribunals have been registered under section 51 since 1997. The purpose of the section is to allow employees to seek redress from the tribunals if their employers refuse them time off work for public duties under section 50.

Music Copyright

Brian Sedgemore: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the future of music copyright.

Melanie Johnson: The protection of music copyright will be further improved by the EC Directive on copyright in the Information Society which is due to be implemented by 22 December this year. The Government are also supporting a Private Member's Bill that increases the criminal penalties for music piracy. The Government will continue to maintain close contact with the music industry on copyright issues.

Barking Power Station

Robert Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on what dates in the past 12 months Barking power station came within 10 per cent. of its maximum generating output.

Brian Wilson: This is a commercial matter for the company involved.

Nuclear Energy Technology

Robert Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans she has to host a conference on the future of nuclear energy technology.

Brian Wilson: Neither my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry nor I have any plans to host a conference on the future of nuclear energy technology. However, on 18–19 February, my Department's officials hosted the fifth in the series of Generation IV International Forum (GIF) meetings in London. Government officials and technical experts from the 10 member countries attended. GIF was started by the United States Department of Energy (USDOE) to promote the development of better longer-term nuclear reactor designs.

Objective 1 Regions

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent assessment she has made of progress in delivering objective programmes in each of the four European Objective 1 regions in input of (a) numbers of projects offered support, (b) total amount of money offered, (c) proportion of total seven year European fund budget offered, (d) total amount of money actually drawn down by successful applicants and (e) proportion of total seven year European funding drawn down.

Alan Johnson: Officials continually monitor European Structural Funds and the four UK Objective 1 programmes are on target to achieve the required expenditure by 31 December 2002. The latest Objective 1 statistics requested by the hon. Member are contained in the table.
	The management of the Objective 1 programme for West Wales and the Valleys is a matter for the National Assembly for Wales. However, I understand from the National Assembly that the figures for the region are as set out in the table.
	
		
			 Objective area Number of projects Committed grant (£ million) Committed grant as percentage of total Grant paid (£ million) Grant paid as percentage of total 
		
		
			 South Yorkshire 192 198.2 27.96 48.5 6.84 
			 Merseyside 674 152.0 18.00 78.9 9.34 
			 Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly 180 75.6 24.57 10.6 3.45 
			 West Wales and the Valleys 441 301.2 26.4 68.2 5.98

Biotechnology Companies

Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many proposals for the creation and incubation of biotechnology companies have been received from Scottish bidders since the establishment of the Biotechnology Mentoring and Incubation Challenge; and how many have been successful.

Brian Wilson: The four calls under the Biotechnology Mentoring and Incubator (BMI) Challenge resulted in four proposals being submitted from Scottish bidders. The BMI Challenge Independent Advisory Panel recommended that the DTI make an award to one applicant. However, due to complications between the 10 collaborating organisations the project did not proceed.

Motor Vehicle Registrations (Edinburgh)

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many motor vehicles were registered to people living in the (a) Edinburgh, west, (b) Edinburgh, central, (c) Edinburgh, east and Musselburgh, (d) Edinburgh, Pentlands, (e) Edinburgh, north and Leith and (f) Edinburgh, south parliamentary constituencies or for the most appropriate geographical areas for which figures are available at the latest date for which figures are available.

David Jamieson: I have been asked to reply.
	The number of currently licensed motor vehicles registered to keepers with addresses in the Edinburgh constituencies is shown in the table. The totals include vehicles registered to companies and other entities as well as to individuals. The table shows the figures for each ward, as some wards (marked 1 ) straddle two constituencies. The volume data is for December 2000, but the analysis to wards was available only by the pre-1996 definition of wards in Edinburgh. No split of volumes is available for the straddling wards and the total for the ward has been included in the constituency in which the greater part of the ward falls.
	
		
			 Constituency/electoral ward Number of motor vehicles 
		
		
			 Edinburgh, central  
			 Dalry 3,143 
			 Dean 2,987 
			 Fountainbridge 1,734 
			 Holyrood 2,059 
			 Moat 2,743 
			 Murrayfield 3,959 
			 Shandon 2,410 
			 Southside 1,298 
			 Stenhouse 2,376 
			 Tollcross(81) 1,398 
			 Total 24,107 
			   
			  Edinburgh, East and Musselburgh 
			 Musselburgh, central/Inveresk(81) 1,963 
			 Musselburgh, east/Pinkie(81) 1,613 
			 Musselburgh, north-west 1,849 
			 Musselburgh, south 2,203 
			 Craigmillar 1,812 
			 Duddingston 3,088 
			 Leith Links(81) 2,511 
			 Meadowbank(81) 2,458 
			 Milton 2,589 
			 Mountcastle 2,259 
			 Portobello 3,277 
			 Restalrig 1,948 
			 Total 27,570 
			 Edinburgh, North and Leith  
			 Broughton 3,206 
			 Calton 1,905 
			 Granton 2,211 
			 Harbour 2,228 
			 Lorne 2,694 
			 New Town 3,842 
			 Newhaven 2,601 
			 Pilton(81) 1,875 
			 Stockbridge 2,576 
			 Trinity 3,002 
			 Total 26,140 
			   
			 Edinburgh, Pentlands  
			 Baberton 3,560 
			 Balerno 3,911 
			 Colinton 4,042 
			 Craiglockhart(81) 3,206 
			 Fairmilehead 3,870 
			 Firrhill 2,126 
			 Murray Burn 32,417 
			 Parkhead 1,865 
			 Sighthill(81) 3,149 
			 South Morningside(81) 3,391 
			 Total 61,537 
			   
			 Edinburgh, South  
			 Alnwickhill 3,066 
			 Gilmerton 2,864 
			 Kaimes 2,609 
			 Marchmont 2,078 
			 Merchiston 2,420 
			 North Morningside 3,489 
			 Prestonfield 1,500 
			 Sciennes 2,420 
			 Total 20,446 
			   
			 Edinburgh, West  
			 Cramond 3,901 
			 Dalmeny/Kirkliston 4,252 
			 Davidsons Mains 4,332 
			 East Craigs 2,648 
			 Gyle 4,702 
			 Muirhouse 1,342 
			 North-east Corstorphine 2,969 
			 Queensferry 3,848 
			 South-east Corstorphine 3,621 
			 Total 33,717

Climate Change Levy

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether the Government propose to exclude nuclear plants from paying the climate change levy.

Paul Boateng: I have been asked to reply.
	I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Orkney and Shetland (Mr. Carmichael) on 15 January 2002, Official Report, column 225W.

Tourism Exports

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate her Department has made of the level of tourism exports in the last five years from each region of the country.

Kim Howells: I have been asked to reply.
	Tourism exports are largely comprised of expenditure by overseas residents during visits to the United Kingdom. Data on this are available from the International Passenger Survey.
	Expenditure by overseas' residents during visits to the UK is shown in the table. These data cover the years of 1996 to 2000 for Regional Tourist Board areas in England and for the countries of the United Kingdom. Regional data for 2001 will be available in May 2002.
	
		Spending by overseas' residents during visits to the UK -- £ million
		
			 Tourist board region/country 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 
		
		
			 London 6,007 5,993 6,298 6,760 6,901 
			 Northumbria 158 190 129 167 169 
			 Cumbria 58 59 45 67 52 
			 North West 381 455 395 441 448 
			 Yorkshire 280 304 286 264 259 
			 Heart of England 646 640 624 704 771 
			 East of England 510 531 585 575 683 
			 West Country 518 477 494 485 553 
			 Southern 739 702 773 797 775 
			 South East England 699 662 827 755 705 
			   
			 All England(81) 9,998 10,026 10,468 11,030 11,359 
			   
			 Wales 198 210 164 269 267 
			 Scotland 839 799 882 817 789 
			 Northern Ireland(82) n/a n/a n/a n/a 107 
			   
			 UK(81) 11,244 11,275 11,723 12,370 12,672 
		
	
	(81) Figures may not sum due to spending not attributable to regions/countries, e.g. in 2000 £110 million was spent on day trips to the UK but was not allocated to region/countries of the UK for reasons of questionnaire simplicity.
	(82) Comparable data not available.
	Source:
	International Passenger Survey, Office for National Statistics

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Re-offenders

Simon Hughes: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the planned timetable is for the completion and publishing of the Social Exclusion Unit's project on re-offending by ex-prisoners; which organisations and individuals have been consulted in relation to the project; and if he will make a statement.

John Prescott: The Social Exclusion Unit is finalising its recommendations, based on extensive research and analysis and expects to publish its report on reducing re-offending by ex-prisoners by spring 2002. The Unit is currently contributing to the Spending Review.
	The Unit has consulted with an extremely wide range of organisations and individuals. There were 265 responses to the Unit's written consultation and the Unit has visited over 50 prisons and young offender institutions and had extensive discussions with staff and prisoners. There have been 11 regional seminars involving a very wide range of local practitioners, including health, housing, employment, education, voluntary sector, social services and police representatives. The Unit has also drawn on surveys of prisoners, both before leaving prison and after release.
	HM Prison Service and the National Probation Service, as well as other government departments, are key partners. The Unit is working closely with the leading national organisations in the field and has drawn on their expertise throughout the project.

Accountancy Services

John Bercow: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the total cost to his Department was for accountancy services in each of the last four years.

Christopher Leslie: This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Fair Trade Fortnight

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what steps he is taking to encourage participation by his Department in fair trade fortnight from 4 to 17 March.

Christopher Leslie: My Department will publicise the event to its staff.
	The Department for International Development is providing £120,000 to the Fairtrade Foundation over three years (2001–2003) in support of its efforts to target new groups through its annual fair trade fortnight campaigns.

Departmental Events

John Bercow: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list the (a) conferences, (b) seminars, (c) workshops, (d) exhibitions and (e) press conferences which have been sponsored by his Department and which took place on non-departmental premises in each of the last four years, giving the title, purpose, date and cost of each.

Christopher Leslie: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

'Creating Knowledge: Creating Wealth' Conference

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what advice the Cabinet Office gave to HM Treasury regarding the sponsorship of the 'Creating Knowledge: Creating Wealth' conference; and if he will make a statement.

Christopher Leslie: The Cabinet Office document Guidance to Departments on Sponsorship of Government Activities, sets out the principles that Departments should follow when seeking sponsorship for Government activities and events. I have placed copies of the guidance in the Libraries of the House.

Regional Bodies

Andrew George: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list the (a) quasi-autonomous boards, (b) commissions, (c) agencies and (d) committees and arms of national bodies which are accountable to Government and Parliament and operate on a geographical basis smaller than nation, but larger than district/unitary authorities for each of the Government's defined nations and regions and grouped by (i) economic development, (ii) arts, (iii) sports, (iv) health, (v) training and education, (vi) agriculture, (vii) environment and rural/urban affairs, (viii) transport, (ix) planning, (x) co-ordination of local government, (xi) European Structural funds and (xii) other sectors.

Barbara Roche: This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Regional Bodies

Andrew George: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what (a) total budget and (b) per capita funding has been provided for each of the last three years for which records are available to each (i) quasi-autonomous board, (ii) commission, (iii) agency and (iv) committee and arms of national bodies which are accountable to Government and which operate on a geographical basis smaller than nations, but larger than district/unitary authorities for each of the Government's defined nations and regions, grouped by sector.

Barbara Roche: This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Civil Defence Grant

Stephen Pound: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what consultations he has had with local authority representatives on the formula to allocate civil defence grant in 2002–03.

Christopher Leslie: I have today written to the Local Government Association seeking their views on the formula that the Government are minded to use to allocate civil defence grant between eligible authorities in the next financial year. I am placing a copy of my letter (which makes clear that the use of such a formula is dependent upon the Civil Defence (Grant) Bill securing Royal Assent) in the Library of the House.

Civil Servants

Paul Burstow: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many new entrants to the civil service were employed in his Department in each of the last five years; and how many in each year were aged 50 years and over.

Christopher Leslie: The figures are shown in the table and represent the data reported to mandate during the years from 1996–97 to 2000–01, based on headcount, for the number of permanent staff in each Department. The figures shown are the overall figures for Departments including any departmental agencies, and are based on the Departments as they were prior to the structural changes made as a result of the 2001 election.
	
		Entrants 2 April 1996 to 1 April 2001 by Department and age -- Permanent staff
		
			   1996–97  1997–98  
			  50+ Others Total 50+ Others Total 
		
		
			 MAFF 51 639 690 76 747 823 
			 Cabinet Office (including the Office of Public Services) 14 102 116 13 153 166 
			 Inland Revenue 219 2,173 2,392 241 2,650 2,891 
			 DCMS 2 56 58 10 93 103 
			 MOD 1,683 9,472 11,155 1,458 7,435 8,893 
			 DfEE 252 3,532 3,784 89 953 1,042 
			 DETR 66 643 709 72 794 866 
			 Home Office 46 512 558 46 496 542 
			 LCD 85 399 484 149 567 716 
			 Scotland 36 247 283 37 310 347 
			 DSS 683 9,299 9,982 483 5,225 5,708 
			 DTI 38 285 323 49 389 438 
			 National Assembly for Wales 5 141 146 6 59 65 
			 Treasury Solicitors 0 18 18 1 24 25 
			 DfID 0 2 2 2 41 43 
			 Charity Commission 1 37 38 5 29 34 
			 GAD 0 10 10 0 11 11 
			 Privy Council Office 0 1 1 0 0 0 
			 Public Record Office 6 36 42 0 0 0 
			 National Investment and Loans Office 0 0 0 0 1 1 
			 HM Treasury 0 29 29 2 51 53 
			 Office of Fair Trading 2 18 20 2 23 25 
			 Northern Ireland Office 2 10 12 1 11 12 
			 Scottish Courts Administration 1 4 5 1 8 9 
			 Legal Secretariat 0 1 1 1 1 2 
			 Crown Office and PFS 1 66 67 3 45 48 
			 Health and Safety Executive 11 117 128 8 134 142 
			 Registry of Friendly Societies 1 16 17 0 5 5 
			 ACAS 2 37 39 0 23 23 
			 General Register Office (Scotland) 0 0 0 0 5 5 
			 ECGD 0 16 16 3 21 24 
			 Customs and Excise 65 1,145 1,210 74 1,153 1,227 
			 Parliamentary Counsel Office 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 DNS 1 21 22 2 12 14 
			 Crown Prosecution Service 12 133 145 15 312 327 
			 OFGAS 0 6 6 0 12 12 
			 OFWAT 1 16 17 0 0 0 
			 OFER 2 10 12 2 17 19 
			 OFSTED 4 55 59 3 28 31 
			 OHMCI 0 0 0 1 5 6 
			 Central Drugs Coordination Unit 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Office SOS for Scotland 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Office SOS for Wales 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Scottish Executive 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 OFGEM 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 HMSO 13 156 169 0 0 0 
			 COI 4 22 26 8 65 73 
			 Department for Registers of Scotland (SO) 7 34 41 2 21 23 
			 Royal Mint 1 50 51 0 53 53 
			 OS 1 18 19 7 110 117 
			 Land Registry 0 47 47 14 344 358 
			 Public Record Office 0 20 20 12 31 43 
			 Scottish Prison Service (SO) 23 460 483 29 396 425 
			 HM Prison Service 333 2,133 2,466 352 3,400 3,752 
			 National Archives of Scotland (SO) 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 PGO (HMT) 2 11 13 0 0 0 
			 Intelligence Services (GCHQ) 1 69 70 8 68 76 
			 ONS 6 141 147 24 122 146 
			 Def Geog Img Intel Agency (MOD) 0 0 0 0 0 0 
		
	
	
		
			   1998–99  1999–2000  2000–01  
			  50+ Others Total 50+ Others Total 50+ Others Total 
		
		
			 MAFF 86 916 1,002 80 721 801 132 1,110 1,242 
			 Cabinet Office (including the Office of Public Services) 22 260 282 25 274 299 22 278 300 
			 Inland Revenue 341 3,663 4,004 597 6,253 6,850 418 4,222 4,640 
			 DCMS 6 42 48 3 41 44 6 46 52 
			 MOD 1,330 6,065 7,395 1,276 6,991 8,267 1,296 6,124 7,420 
			 DfEE 226 2,653 2,879 262 3,626 3,888 314 3,070 3,384 
			 DETR 70 890 960 90 1,313 1,403 116 845 961 
			 Home Office 62 770 832 146 1,559 1,705 252 3,431 3,683 
			 LCD 174 973 1,147 206 1,289 1,495 207 1,111 1,318 
			 Scotland 51 530 581 16 137 153 4 130 134 
			 DSS 840 9,629 10,469 1,063 10,918 11,981 700 6,117 6,817 
			 DTI 56 502 558 47 585 632 110 665 775 
			 National Assembly for Wales 21 110 131 30 267 297 43 353 396 
			 Treasury Solicitors 4 31 35 3 55 58 2 48 50 
			 DfID 5 78 83 7 72 79 7 94 101 
			 Charity Commission 1 30 31 3 56 59 5 67 72 
			 GAD 2 15 17 0 1 1 2 13 15 
			 Privy Council Office 0 1 1 0 2 2 1 1 2 
			 Public Record Office 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 National Investment and Loans Office 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 HM Treasury 1 48 49 0 37 37 0 0 0 
			 Office of Fair Trading 3 22 25 0 1 1 0 0 0 
			 Northern Ireland Office 0 19 19 2 19 21 4 55 59 
			 Scottish Courts Administration 0 5 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Legal Secretariat 0 5 5 1 1 2 0 0 0 
			 Crown Office and PFS 3 51 54 12 117 129 7 108 115 
			 Health and Safety Executive 11 189 200 17 253 270 16 279 295 
			 Registry of Friendly Societies 0 5 5 0 8 8 0 0 0 
			 ACAS 0 0 0 5 43 48 11 34 45 
			 General Register Office (Scotland) 0 13 13 1 10 11 5 14 19 
			 ECGD 0 7 7 1 30 31 1 45 46 
			 Customs and Excise 38 586 624 31 573 604 49 1,067 1,116 
			 Parliamentary Counsel Office 0 0 0 0 3 3 0 2 2 
			 DNS 0 10 10 1 21 22 1 34 35 
			 Crown Prosecution Service 16 355 371 16 345 361 18 259 277 
			 OFGAS 2 32 34 3 102 105 0 0 0 
			 OFWAT 0 0 0 2 26 28 6 45 51 
			 OFER 0 21 21 0 16 16 0 0 0 
			 OFSTED 6 32 38 6 67 73 15 80 95 
			 OHMCI 2 7 9 3 15 18 1 1 2 
			 Central Drugs Coordination Unit 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Office SOS for Scotland 0 0 0 0 2 2 1 13 14 
			 Office SOS for Wales 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 
			 Scottish Executive 0 0 0 31 413 444 32 448 480 
			 OFGEM 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 49 53 
			 HMSO 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 COI 4 44 48 1 54 55 12 87 99 
			 Department. for Registers of Scotland (SO) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Royal Mint 3 61 64 1 101 102 2 74 76 
			 OS 1 107 108 3 87 90 13 125 138 
			 Land Registry 16 330 346 21 342 363 23 360 383 
			 Public Record Office 7 31 38 6 53 59 11 83 94 
			 Scottish Prison Service (SO) 28 458 486 14 224 238 15 107 122 
			 HM Prison Service 301 2,838 3,139 294 2,845 3,139 296 2,178 2,474 
			 National Archives of Scotland (SO) 4 8 12 3 14 17 5 15 20 
			 PGO (HMT) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Intelligence Services (GCHQ) 15 239 254 15 272 287 18 262 280 
			 ONS 20 165 185 21 169 190 40 410 450 
			 Def Geog Img Intel Agency (MOD) 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 22 25

SCOTLAND

Friends of Scotland

Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many of the advisory board of Friends of Scotland accompanied her on her visit to the Far East.

Helen Liddell: None.

A77

Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what representations she has received on the level of speed limit imposed on heavy goods vehicles on the A77 between Ayr and Stranraer.

Helen Liddell: Neither I nor my right hon. Friend of the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions have received any representations on this matter.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Angola

Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development for what reason humanitarian assistance to Angola has fallen by one third over the last year.

Clare Short: The levels of DFID humanitarian assistance provided to Angola in recent years have depended on the nature of requests put to us, and also on competing claims for our resources elsewhere in the continent.

Rail Journeys (Staff)

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what was the (a) percentage and number of rail journeys undertaken on first class tickets, (b) average cost of a first class journey by rail and (c) total cost of rail travel in each of the past four years broken down by grade of civil servant.

Clare Short: Details of rail travel booked by DFID's in-house travel agent are given for the period from September 1998. Detailed figures before that date, or for travel by grade throughout the period, or for travel booked by other means are not available without disproportionate costs.
	
		
			  September 1998 to March 1999 April 1999 to March 2000 April 2000 to March 2001 April 2001 to January 2002 Totals 
		
		
			 Number of first class journeys by rail 737 2,037 1,712 1,448 5,934 
			 As percentage of all rail journeys 61.72 66.87 52.59 51.75 57.65 
			 Average cost of first class journey (£) 133.18 103.88 121.28 160.71 126.41 
			 Total cost of all rail travel (£) 111,995.18 245,661.61 244,868.22 275,987.55 878,512.56

Rail Journeys (Staff)

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many new entrants to the Civil Service were employed in her Department in each of the last five years; and how many in each year were aged 50 and over.

Clare Short: The information requested is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Staff

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many staff left the service of her Department and its agencies in the year ended 31 March 2001; how many left before attaining the formal retirement age of 60 years; and in respect of how many her Department and its agencies assumed responsibilities for making payments until retirement age.

Clare Short: The information requested is as follows:
	59 staff left the service during 2000–01. Of these, 50 left before the retirement age of 60 years and two are early retirement cases in respect of whom DFID is making payments until retirement age.

Projects (Palestinian Authority)

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what projects her Department has funded from 1997 to 2002 in the territory controlled by the Palestinian Authority; what the annual amount of funding was for each of these projects; how many of these projects included construction work; what the status of the building funded by her Department is; and if she will make a statement.

Clare Short: The following table sets out the information requested. The funding column shows the total project allocation. Annual disbursement figures could be provided only at a disproportionate cost.
	
		
			 Project Funding (£) Construction work 
		
		
			 Birzeit Food Quality Control Unit (1997) 425,872 No 
			 Group Guaranteed Lending (1997) 1,820,000 No 
			 Assistance to the Education Sector (1997) 3,225,700 No 
			 Population Census (1997) 80,000 No 
			 Newcastle University—Hydrology (1997) 715,000 No 
			 Primary Health Care (1997) 950,000 No 
			 Gender and Law (1997) 1,628,128 No 
			 Economic Protocol (1997) 5,000 No 
			 VAT Audit Training (1997) 102,000 No 
			 Economic Protocol (1998) 730,281 No 
			 Southern Area Water Appraisal 45,000 No 
			 Strengthening Parliamentary Democracy (1998) 775,000 No 
			 Assistance to the Legal Sector (1998) 12,500 No 
			 Rural Water Schemes Appraisal (1998) 110,000 No 
			 Legal Sector Assistance—Phase 2 (1998) 70,252 No 
			 Health Management Strengthening (1998) 3,600,000 No 
			 Bethlehem 2000 Doha Sewerage (1999) 1,400,000 Yes—the construction of sewerage pipes was completed in July 2000 
			 Save the Children Fund Water and Sanitation Project—Dura (1999) 1,678,092 Yes—work on piped water supplies, sewerage pipes and drains, is now in its third year 
			 Save the Children Fund Water and Sanitation Project—Jabalia (1999) 908,905 Yes—work on piped water supplies, sewerage pipes and drains, is now in its third year 
			 Save the Children Fund Water and Sanitation Project—Anabta (1999) 1,610,859 Yes—work on piped water supplies, sewerage pipes and drains, is now in its third year 
			 Unification and Development of Legislation (1999) 775,000 No 
			 Assistance to the Negotiations Affairs Department (1999) 4,200,000 No 
			 Tele-Cardiology (Peres Centre) (1999) 850,000 No 
			 Sustainable Management of West Bank and Gaza Aquifers (1999) 1,971,308 No 
			 Gaza Midwifery (1999) 545,000 No 
			 Hebron Water Access and Storage (1999) 513,572 Yes—the construction of cisterns and latrines has now been completed 
			 Economy and Trade Policy Development (1999) 495,057 No 
			 Save the Children Fund Water and Sanitation Project—Rafah (1999) 2,013,836 Yes—work on piped water supplies, sewerage pipes and drains, is now in its third year 
			 Census Reports (1999) 92,500 No 
			 Legislative Council Library (1999) 353,700 No 
			 Union of Palestinian Medical Relief Committees Women's Health (2000) 987,000 No 
			 Public Administration Institutional Development (2000) 1,900,000 No 
			 Primary Health Care—Phase 2 (2000) 1,550,000 Yes—small scale remodelling work for lecture rooms and library now completed 
			 Participatory Poverty Assessment (2001) 500,000 No 
			 Utilisation of Census Data (2001) 700,000 No 
			 Union of Palestinian Medical Relief Committees Emergency Response (2001) 520,000 No 
			 World Bank Employment Generation Programme (2001) 1,500,000 No 
			 OXFAM Humanitarian Grant (2001) 34,000 No 
			 Mental Health and Trauma Counselling (2001) 450,000 No 
			 World Food Programme Appeal (2001) 500,000 No 
			 Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs Grant (2001) 300,000 No 
			 Supporting Literacy (2001) 290,000 No 
			 Child Health Development (2001) 1,215,000 No 
			 World Bank NGO Project—Phase 2 (2001) 4,500,000 No 
			 Reducing the Impact of Violence on Palestinian Children (2001) 517,000 No 
			 Palestinian Hydrology Group—Water Sector Grant (2001) 250,000 Yes—work on a number of cisterns is nearing completion 
			 Economic Policy Programme—Phase 3 (2001) 1,015,000 No 
			 Hebron Water Access and Storage—Phase 2 (2001) 5,000,000 Yes—the construction of numerous cisterns and latrines have recently begun

Reproductive Health Programmes

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what population reproductive health programmes are directly run by her Department in (a) Africa, (b) south and central America, (c) the middle east, (d) central and eastern Europe, (e) Asia and (f) Oceania; and if she will make a statement.

Clare Short: Reproductive health is a priority for my Department. The target of achieving access to reproductive health for all by 2015 is at the core of our reproductive health policy. We are working with partners to ensure that the international community and developing countries continue to give the issue the priority it demands.
	The following is a list of current reproductive health programmes (over £1 million) funded by DFID:
	
		
			 Country Programme 
		
		
			 a) Africa  
			 Nigeria Sexual and Reproductive Health programme; life planning education programme; HIV/AIDS programme 
			 Kenya Family health programme; HIV/AIDS programme; safe motherhood demonstration project 
			 South Africa Reproductive health programme; social marketing of condoms; Soul City multi media initiative 
			 Mozambique Social marketing of condoms 
			 Zambia HIV/AIDS and reproductive health programme 
			 Uganda Support for TASO—AIDS Support Organisation 
			 Malawi Sexual and maternal health programme 
			 Tanzania Safe motherhood programme; family planning programme; support for health sector reform including sexual and reproductive health 
			 Zimbabwe Sexual and reproductive health programme 
			 Ghana Ghana HIV/AIDS programme 
			 Mozambique HIV/AIDS and maternal health programme 
			 Sierra Leone Strengthening reproductive health provision 
			 Ethiopia Social marketing of condoms 
			 Africa Regional (Ethiopia, Rwanda and Burundi) Support to International Partnership Against AIDS in Africa 
			 Southern Africa Development Co-ordinating Committee Regional HIV/AIDS Programme 
			   
			 b) South and Central America  
			 Central America: regional Improving sexual and reproductive health services 
			 Bolivia Health and Sexual Education programme 
			 Peru Reproductive Health programme 
			   
			 c) Middle East None 
			   
			 d) Central and Eastern Europe  
			 Russian Federation STD programme; HIV/AIDS programme; support for Russian Family Planning Association 
			   
			 e) Asia  
			 China HIV/AIDS programme 
			 Bangladesh Reproductive health and disease control project; contraceptive social marketing; HIV/AIDS programme; CARE-RASTTA Bondor STD/HIV project 
			 India Support for National AIDS Control Programme, Orissa reproductive health project 
			 Nepal Reproductive health programme and rights-based response to HIV/AIDS 
			 Pakistan Reproductive health programme; social marketing of condoms; private sector population project; community based family planning project 
			 Asia Regional HIV/AIDS prevention in Asia 
			   
			 f) Oceania None

Contraceptive Commodity Support Programme

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what contribution the UK has made to the United Nations Family Planning Agency's Contraceptive Commodity Support programme in (a) 2000, (b) 2001 and (c) 2002; and if she will make a statement.

Clare Short: No contribution was made in 2000 to the United Nations Population Fund's Contraceptive Commodity Support programme. My Department contributed £25 million in 2001. A decision has not yet been made about a contribution in 2002.

Afghanistan

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what projects her Department is supporting in respect of maternity clinics in Afghanistan; what steps her Department is taking to improve the conditions in (a) Malalai Maternity, (b) Rabia Balkhi Women's Hospital and (c) Kheikhana Hospital in Kabul; and if she will make a statement.

Clare Short: Maternal mortality in Afghanistan is the second highest in the world, and one in four children dies before reaching the age of five. Recent surveys have highlighted the weaknesses in Kabul's MCH services, which are mirrored elsewhere in the country.
	Our support of £8 million to UNICEF includes assistance to MCH clinics including those in Kabul, by providing training on pregnancy and childbirth. We have also contributed £3 million to the World Health Organisation for public health surveillance and disease control. In addition, we are providing £1 million to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent societies, to support the Afghan Red Crescent Society's nationwide network of 48 clinics offering MCH services; and supporting a number of quick impact recovery projects to rehabilitate MCH clinics.

Afghanistan

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on humanitarian aid to Afghanistan disbursed through the Central Asian Republics.

Clare Short: Significant quantities of food and other assistance have been delivered to Afghanistan through the Central Asian republics by the United Nations, the Red Cross movement and non-governmental organisations. The main routes are the Friendship Bridge from Uzbekistan, the Nizhny Pianj barge crossing from Tajikistan, the land route through Krgyztan and Tajikistan into Badakhshan via Ishkashim (used by the Russian Ministry of Emergencies with DFID funding), and the land route from Turkmenistan to Herat. In addition, the World Food Programme has flown food supplies into Faizabad from Kulyab Tajikistan.
	The Central Asian routes were of particular importance while southern routes from pakistan and Iran could not be used for security reasons. With the improvement in the general security situation, the southern routes are now the main supply routes into Afghanistan.

Afghanistan

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what action her Department is taking to help internally displaced people surrounding Herat in western Afghanistan return to their homes.

Clare Short: The area surrounding Herat in western Afghanistan is home to the largest gathering of internally displaced people (IDPs) in the country. The largest organised camp is at Maslakh in Herat with an estimated population of 200,000. Assisted by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and non- governmental organisations (NGOs), the International Organisation for Migration is currently re-registering the IDPs in Maslakh as the first step in returning them to their homes.
	We have committed over £3.5 million to the IOM and £3 million pounds to UNHCR to include provision for displaced people in the region; including for facilitating their safe return home.

Afghanistan

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment she has made of levels of malnourishment amongst internally displaced people in Afghanistan.

Clare Short: There have been a number of nutritional surveys conducted by humanitarian agencies. These indicate that some remote areas are facing difficulty in receiving sufficient food aid.
	The World Food Programme (WFP), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and other humanitarian agencies are continuing to do their best to deliver life-saving assistance to those in need. WFP have recently launched rapid assessment helicopter missions to investigate reports of food shortages and other urgent needs in difficult-to-access areas of Afghanistan, especially western Afghanistan. We have contributed £6 million towards WFP's operations inside Afghanistan, for both direct procurement and transportation of food and for logistical support to help speed up the movement of food aid into the country. We have also supported a number of agencies—the United Nations, Red Cross and non-governmental organisations (NGOs)—for supplementary feeding and secondary distribution of food inside Afghanistan.

Afghanistan

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on the levels of humanitarian aid disbursed via the friendship bridge between Uzbekistan and Afghanistan.

Clare Short: The Friendship Bridge crossing from Termez, Uzbekistan to Hairaton, northern Afghanistan, has been operational since it was reopened by the Uzbek authorities on 9 December 2001. Useful quantities of food and other relief assistance have been transported by United Nations agencies and non-governmental organisations across the bridge, which is an important route into the north for both humanitarian and commercial traffic; for example, earlier this month over 3,700 tonnes of assistance were transported in one week across the bridge.

Advertising

Alex Salmond: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the expenditure was per campaign for the five most expensive media advertising campaigns her Department undertook in the past five Parliamentary sessions including the current Parliamentary session in (a) Scotland, (b) England, (c) Wales and (d) Northern Ireland; and for the last two Parliamentary sessions and the current session, when each advertising campaign (i) began and (ii) ended in (A) Scotland, (B) England, (C) Wales and (D) Northern Ireland.

Clare Short: DFID does not run a programme of media advertising campaigns.

Advertising

Alex Salmond: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the cost was of media advertising in each of the past five parliamentary sessions including the current session, for her Department in (a) England, (b) Wales and (c) Northern Ireland; and for the last two Parliamentary sessions and the current Parliamentary session, what the media advertising expenditure was per month in (i) England, (ii) Wales and (iii) Northern Ireland.

Clare Short: DFID does not undertake media advertising campaigns. The bulk of our media advertising expenditure is in relation to recruitment advertising, on which we spend around £1 million per year. It would involve disproportionate cost to break this figure down to the level of detail requested.
	In addition, DFID commissioned a 12-page supplement in The Independent on the subject of globalisation to accompany the Government's second White Paper on International Development. The report was published on 12 December 2000 at a cost of £40,276.

Union Duties

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many staff in her Department, agencies and non-departmental public bodies receive paid leave to undertake union duties; how many days they are allocated; and what has been the cost to public funds in each of the last four years.

Clare Short: There are 18 members of staff who are entitled to paid leave to undertake union duties in addition to two full time representatives of the Public and Commercial Services Union; in practice, one of two may take up that entitlement in any one year. There is no formally agreed number of days, each case being handled on its merits. The estimated cost to public funds in each of the last four years has been as follows:
	
		
			 Year £ 
		
		
			 1998 356 
			 1999 96 
			 2000 155 
			 2001 175

Website

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the total cost of her Department's website was in real terms in each of the last four years; and how many hits it received in each of those years.

Clare Short: The total costs for the DFID website for the financial years 1998–99 to 2001–02 (to date) were as follows:
	1998–99: £40,305
	1999–2000: £42,731
	2000–01: £61,612
	2001–02: £131,381.
	These figures include salary costs for the website manager, but exclude the costs of centrally provided departmental services (e.g. telephone charges). The figures for the current year include one-off costs for a complete redevelopment of the website to allow for a significant expansion in departmental material made available in electronic form, and in response to an increasing interest in the work of the Department.
	The average weekly assessed hits for the same periods were:
	1998–99: 37,000
	1999–2000: 38,000
	2000–01: 40,257
	2001–02 1 : 77,841
	1 To date

Publicity Expenditure

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment she has made of the total real terms expenditure of her Department, its agencies and non-departmental public bodies on publicity in each of the years (a) 1997–98, (b) 1998–99, (c) 1999–2000, (d) 2000–01 and (e) 2001–02 (i) to date and (ii) as estimated for the whole of the present year; and if she will break these figures down to indicate expenditure on (A) advertising and (B) press and public relations.

Clare Short: Expenditure in relation to paid publicity in the years in question was as follows:
	
		
			  £000 
		
		
			 1997–98 410 
			 1998–99 697 
			 1999–2000 880 
			 2000–01 1,487 
			 2001–02(83) 1,194 
			 2001–02(84) 1,410 
		
	
	(83) To date
	(84) Estimated
	The annual totals given include expenditure on departmental publications, exhibitions, visits and displays, photography, video production and internet services. The increase over the period reflects our commitment to greater openness, as well as to promoting greater public awareness and understanding of international development issues.
	We hold a separate budget for Press Office running costs (other than salary costs), for which expenditure in the years in questions was:
	
		
			  £000 
		
		
			 1998–99 70 
			 1999–2000 151 
			 2000–01 119 
			 2001–02(85) 126 
			 2001–02(86) 175 
		
	
	(85) To date
	(86) Estimated
	Figures for 1997–98 are not obtainable without involving disproportionate cost.
	DFID does not hold a specific advertising budget. However the bulk of our paid advertising relates to recruitment advertising in newspapers and journals, costing around £1 million a year.

Industrial Action

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many days have been lost owing to industrial action by staff in her Department, agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each of the last four years.

Clare Short: There have been no days lost owing to industrial action.

Russia

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development who conducted the recent study in Russia on the provision of reproductive health services funded by the Department for International Development; if there were independent assessors; what the results of the survey were; if she will place a full report in the Library; and what contraceptive and abortion facilities were made available to women who took part in the survey.

Clare Short: My Department engaged John Snow International (UK)'s Centre for Sexual and Reproductive Health to undertake a review of literature on maternal health in Russia and the former Soviet Union from April 2000 to June 2001. The purpose of the project was to identify, review and summarise information that would form a basis for a future plan of action on maternal and reproductive health in the region. The reviewers made a number of recommendations on the development of Russian evidence-based guidelines on reproductive health. A copy of the project's final report will be placed in the Library of the House. The project did not assess reproductive health facilities in Russia or survey users of such facilities.

Ministerial Boxes

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development by what means ministerial boxes are conveyed from private offices in her Department to (a) herself and (b) her fellow Ministers; how frequently and at what expense private courier firms are employed for such a task; and which courier firms have been used for such duties.

Clare Short: The ministerial boxes for the Secretary of State and the Under-Secretary of State are conveyed using the Government Car Service, Royal Mail and trains as required. Private courier firms are not used.

Iran

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on her Department's work in Iran.

Clare Short: We do not have a development assistance programme with the Government of Iran. However, we are providing humanitarian assistance for Iraqi refugees in Southern Iran, which to date has amounted to £1.45 million. This is being channelled through an international NGO, The AMAR International Charitable Foundation.
	We are also providing support through the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) to education and health services for Afghan refugees in urban areas of Iran, and to the World Food Programme for feeding programmes in Afghan refugee camps. Our assistance to date has totalled almost £1.5 million.

Refugee Camps

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment she has made of the conditions in (a) Jalozai and (b) Shalman refugee camps; and what action her Department is taking to improve conditions in these camps.

Clare Short: UNHCR and the Government of Pakistan recently completed the voluntary relocation of all 45,000 residents of Jalozai refugee camp to five new sites in Pakistan, which had been purpose built to offer better conditions. Officials from my Department visited one of these camps, Shalman, last week and reported it to be well run, with good security and a considerable improvement on conditions at Jalozai.
	We have provided £3 million to UNHCR for its programme in response to the Afghan crisis, this has included a site planning specialist and other practical as well as financial support.

Refugee Camps

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment she has made of the number of rape incidents in refugee camps in (a) Afghanistan and (b) Pakistan.

Clare Short: We are not aware of any quantitative assessment by humanitarian agencies of the number of rape incidents in IDP camps in Afghanistan nor refugee camps in Pakistan.
	The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has established guidelines on the Protection of Refugee Women (details of which can found at www.unhcr.ch) of which we are fully supportive. We have provided £3 million to UNHCR for its regional programme for humanitarian assistance for Afghans. We are also supporting other agencies including the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and international non-governmental organisations who manage IDP camps in Afghanistan using similar guidelines for minimum standards in humanitarian protection and care.

Development Assistance

Ann Widdecombe: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment she had made of the Government's progress towards the target of 0.7 per cent. of GNP for development assistance; and if she will make a statement.

Clare Short: The UK has increased official development assistance (ODA) by a third in real terms since 1997. In 2000 net official development assistance from the UK to developing countries was £2.974 million which represented 0.32 per cent. of gross national income (GNI)—up from 0.26 per cent. in 1997. This made us the fourth largest bilateral donor in volume terms. We have pledged to raise ODA as a percentage of gross national income (GNI) to 0.33 per cent. by 2003–04.
	Our position after 2003–04 is under discussion with the Chancellor as part of the current public spending round and will not be determined before June. We are committed to making substantial further progress towards the UN 0.7 per cent. target.

Sudan

Julia Drown: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether the Government supports the resumption of EU aid to Sudan; and whether it supports attaching to this aid clear benchmarks in the EU-Sudan dialogue.

Clare Short: We support the EC making preparations for the resumption of aid to Sudan so that aid can be disbursed when the time is right. But it would be premature for the EC to begin disbursing assistance, other than that which is intended to meet urgent humanitarian need, before there are substantial moves towards peace.

Uganda and Rwanda (Extradition)

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on her Department's policy on a bilateral extradition treaty between Uganda and Rwanda.

Clare Short: We have been working hard to reduce tension between Rwanda and Uganda. I met Presidents Museveni and Kagame again last week to review the progress on the Memorandum of Understanding signed between them in November. The MoU covered the need for an extradition treaty on which they are now working. The UK stands ready to offer advice on this if it is needed.

Rwanda

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what action she has taken to encourage Rwanda to withdraw its troops from the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Clare Short: Rwanda has legitimate security concerns in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Since those responsible for the genocide in Rwanda in 1994 are fighting to invade Rwanda. The UK supports the full implementation of the Lusaka Peace Agreement from which links the need for progress on the formation of a transitional Government and a target date for elections in the DRC, the disarmament and demobilisation of the rebel forces seeking to destabilise Rwanda and Burundi and the withdrawal of foreign forces.

Democratic Republic of Congo

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on the next stage of the inter-Congolese dialogue in Sun City, South Africa.

Clare Short: The next stage of the inter-Congolese dialogue, due to start next week in Sun City, is a crucial step in the implementation of the Lusaka Peace Agreement which is the only viable solution to the long-running conflict in the DRC. It is important that the dialogue should lead to agreement on a transitional Government and a date for democratic elections in the DRC.

Democratic Republic of Congo

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on the outcome of the UN talks in Geneva on the peace process in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Clare Short: The talks in Geneva, in advance of the Sun City meeting, failed to achieve agreement between the parties to the conflict. It is important that all parties should be encouraged to attend the talks in Sun City and to agree on the formation of a transitional Government and a date for democratic elections in the DRC.

Democratic Republic of Congo

Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what further help her Department will provide for aid agencies dealing with the provision of water sanitation in Renseraki, Republic of Congo.

Clare Short: We are not currently funding any projects with NGOs or other aid agencies in the Republic of Congo, and have no plans to do so. I understand that the ICRC plans to continue working on the rehabilitation of water and sanitation supplies to certain towns in the Republic, but that Renseraki does not currently feature in their plans at present.

World Summit on Sustainable Development

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what plans her Department has to work with other Government departments to raise awareness (a) before and (b) during the World Summit on Sustainable Development.

Clare Short: My Department is represented at Cabinet Committee (MISC 18), chaired by the Deputy Prime Minister, which has been set up to develop, co-ordinate and deliver the Government's strategy for the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD). We are also represented on the WSSD inter-departmental group and a high level steering group, both chaired by DEFRA. All Government Departments have agreed through MISC 18 a communications strategy for WSSD to raise awareness of the summit. We are working with other Departments to take it forward.

Development Awareness Fund

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what percentage of her Department's Development Awareness Fund is given in grants; and what percentage is spent on her Department's internal work.

Clare Short: Our budget for public information and awareness raising activities in 2001–02 is £7.25 million. Within this, the Development Awareness Fund has a budget in 2001–02 of £5.69 million (78.5 per cent. of the total) and is all grant based. Our wider public services work (which includes our publications, Development policy Forums, the DFID website, DFID Public Inquiry Point and DFID exhibitions and display activities) has a budget in 2001–02 of £1.56 million (21.5 per cent.).

Working Conditions

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many people are employed in her Department on a job share contract; and what percentage of vacant positions was advertised on this basis in the last 12 months.

Clare Short: The Department currently employs 18 staff on official job share contracts. Two such posts out of a total of 348 (0.57 per cent.) have been advertised through our internal procedures in the last 12 months.

Working Conditions

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment has been made of the effect of the working time directive on her Department's employees; how many employees are working in excess of 48 hours per week; what steps she is taking to reduce this number; and if she will make a statement.

Clare Short: DFID has no recorded incidence of employees working in excess of 48 hours per week and none who have been required to sign a waiver under the terms of the working time directive. The Department is conscious of its responsibilities under this legislation and is committed to ensuring that staff do not exceed the 48 hour limit.

Working Conditions

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many cases of work- related stress have been reported in her Department; how much compensation has been paid to employees; how many work days have been lost due to work-related stress, and at what cost; what procedures have been put in place to reduce work-related stress, and at what cost, in each of the last three years; and if she will make a statement.

Clare Short: The information requested is not held and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	DFID is conscious of its legal obligation to provide a safe working environment for employees and is committed to meeting targets for reducing the number of working days lost generally due to work related injuries and illness.

Fair Trade Goods

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to her answer of 16 November 2001, Official Report, column 931W, on fair trade goods, if she will review and increase the amount of fairly traded goods purchased by her Department during Fair Trade Fortnight.

Clare Short: As mentioned in my answer of 16 November 2001, my Department has supported FT initiatives for a number of years, both in developing countries and in the UK. This support forms part of a wider dialogue with the private sector to encourage them to adopt more socially responsible and ethical business practices. As companies and consumers become more aware of the connection between the way business is done and its impact on the livelihoods of people in developing countries, so the pressure for positive change grows.
	Primarily for this reason, DFID is providing £120,000 to the Fair Trade Foundation over three years (2001–03) in support of its efforts to target new consumers through its annual Fair Trade Fortnight campaigns. In addition, Hilary Benn will be attending the launch of this year's campaign on 4 March 2002.
	We also continue to serve FT coffee at all our official meetings and our in-house caterers will be actively promoting FT goods during the fortnight.

Consultants

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the total cost to her Department was of the use of external consultants in each of the last four years.

Clare Short: DFID expenditure on consultancies from the development programme over the past four financial years is given in the table:
	
		
			  £ million 
		
		
			 1997–98 204 
			 1998–99 199 
			 1999–2000 198 
			 2000–01 209 
		
	
	Expenditure on consultancy funded from DFID running costs has been around £2 million in each year.

Contracts

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many contracts were let by her Department and agencies for which she is responsible to (a) PWC Consulting or PricewaterhouseCoopers, (b) Ernst & Young, (c) Deloitte & Touche, (d) KPMG and (e) Andersen for consultancy services for the financial years (i) 1997–98, (ii) 1998–99, (iii) 1999–2000, (iv) 2000–01 and (v) 2001 to the latest date for which figures are available, indicating the remuneration in each case.

Clare Short: Details are given in the following table:
	
		
			  Financial Year 1997–98 Financial Year 1998–99  
			 Consultant  New contracts Value £ Cost billed to DFID for all current contracts New contracts Value £ Cost billed to DFID for all current contracts 
		
		
			 PricewaterhouseCoopers 28 5,575,135 14,910,760 38 11,193,643 12,158,276 
			 Ernst & Young 9 445,792 444,823 15 838,429 734,951 
			 Deloitte & Touche 1 4,185 54,815 5 269,070 36,852 
			 KPMG 19 7,104,728 3,317,440 17 2,548,237 4,087,979 
			 Arthur Andersen 0 0 0 3 24,558,244 2,745,702 
		
	
	
		
			  Financial Year 1999–2000 Financial Year 2000–01 Financial Year 2001–02(87)  
			 Consultant New contracts Value £ Cost billed to DFID for all current contracts New contracts Value £ Cost billed to DFID for all current contracts New contracts Value £ Cost billed to DFID for all current contracts 
		
		
			 PricewaterhouseCoopers 42 13,405,142 1,012,668 31 19,018,515 16,252,770 21 3,075,210 11,014,066 
			 Ernst & Young 6 286,800 531,170 1 11,610 57,636 5 43,023 47,614 
			 Deloitte & Touche 6 749,262 184,577 9 8,478,352 1,481,185 6 633,884 1,733,079 
			 KPMG 23 12,773,757 3,097,485 17 4,700,110 5,626,769 15 2,185,931 3,977,785 
			 Arthur Andersen 1 27,724 6,655,157 1 83,721 6,616,784 2 114,162 5,528,055

HOME DEPARTMENT

English Language

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of the population is fluent in the English language.

John Healey: holding answer 8 February 2002
	I have been asked to reply.
	We have no reliable data regarding the proportion of the population who are fluent in the English language. Research undertaken by the Institute of Education and MORI in 1995 for the Basic Skills Agency suggested that around 450,000 people living in the UK, whose first language is not English, have little command of the English language. However, more recent research indicates that the figure could easily be twice this amount. Later this year, we will be conducting a survey of literacy, language and numeracy needs in England as part of our "Skills for Life" strategy to improve adult basic skills. This will provide a more accurate and current assessment of the extent of English language need.

Teacher Vacancies

Virginia Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which 10 education authorities have (a) the highest and (b) the lowest number of teacher vacancies; what the numbers of teachers involved are; and whether she is taking steps to remove the inequality.

Stephen Timms: I have been asked to reply.
	The 10 local education authorities in England that reported the highest number of teacher vacancies 1 for maintained nursery, primary, secondary and special schools in January 2001, and their number of vacancies, were as follows:
	
		
			 Education authorities  
		
		
			 Essex 220 
			 Kent 196 
			 Hampshire 175 
			 Tower Hamlets 157 
			 Surrey 104 
			 Newham 103 
			 Hackney 101 
			 Southwark 100 
			 Barnet 100 
			 Suffolk 89 
		
	
	Ten local education authorities reported no teacher vacancies. They were as follows:
	City of London
	Cornwall
	Isles of Scilly
	Liverpool
	Manchester
	Northumberland
	Nottinghamshire
	Rutland
	South Tyneside
	Trafford.
	In 2001–02, the Government made £33 million available to fund local teacher recruitment and retention initiatives. Almost 80 per cent. of those funds went to schools in London and the South East. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State recently announced a further £44 million for 2002–03. More than 3,500 teachers will also receive assistance to purchase homes in areas of high price or demand as part of the Government's £250 million Starter Homes Initiative. 2,890 of these teachers will be in London and the South East. My right hon. Friend has also proposed to accept the School Teacher's Review Body's recommendation to award a fourth successive above-inflation pay increase for all teachers from 1 April 2002.
	1 Vacancies are recorded for posts which have been advertised for full-time appointments of at least one term's duration, that exist on the survey date of the third Thursday in January. A post would not be recorded as a vacancy if someone appointed to that post on a full-time contract of one term or more has filled the post.

Refugee Accommodation

Peter Atkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his oral statement of 7 February 2002, Official Report, columns 1027–29, on nationality, immigration and asylum, if he will make a statement on the future of other providers of accommodation for refugees.

Angela Eagle: holding answer 12 February 2002
	The trial of accommodation centres is expected to provide for 3,000 places. Asylum seekers requiring accommodation who are not offered a place in one of the accommodation centres will be dispersed in line with current policies. National Asylum Support Service (NASS) will continue to work with its existing contractors to provide accommodation in these circumstances.

National Asylum Support Service

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much it cost to run the National Asylum Support Service in 2001.

Angela Eagle: The information is not available in the format requested. For the financial year 2001–02 National Asylum Support Service (NASS) has been allocated £17.8 million 1 to cover pay and related administration costs and £22.1 million 1 for grants to voluntary organisations working with asylum seeker.
	1 All figures are rounded to the nearest £ million.

Electronic Tagging

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) men and (b) women were electronically tagged in England and Wales as at 1 February.

Beverley Hughes: 59,509 people have been electronically tagged in England and Wales between the start of the current electronic monitoring contracts on 28 January 1999 and 1 February 2002. Of these 53,764 were male and 5,745 were female. On 1 February 2002, a total of 3,391 persons were still being monitored. Of these 3,073 were male and 318 were female.

Prison Officers (Suspension)

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prison officer in England and Wales are suspended from duty because of allegations of cruelty to prison inmates; and what is the average period of time these officers have been suspended for.

Beverley Hughes: There are currently 29 prison officers suspended for this reason. The average length of time they have been suspended is 7.25 months.

Suspects (Mental Illness)

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what provision exists in (a) England and Wales and (b) Devon, for police and social services to liaise on matters concerning suspects suffering from mental illness.

John Denham: Under the Codes of Practice issued under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, when a suspect who is suffering from a mental illness is in police custody the custody officer must, as soon as practicable, inform the appropriate adult of the grounds for detention and his whereabouts and ask the adult to come to the police station to see the person. An appropriate adult includes someone who has experience of dealing with mentally disordered or mentally handicapped people, such as an approved social worker as defined by the Mental Health Act 1983 or a specialised social worker.
	Where a person has been detained at a police station under section 136 of the Mental Health Act 1983 an approved social worker and a registered medical practitioner shall be called to the police station as soon as possible in order to interview and examine the person. The person should not be released until he has been seen by both the approved social worker and the registered medical practitioner.
	I am informed by the chief constable that in Devon and Cornwall there is formal multi-agency policy, containing practice and procedural guidelines, which addresses issues relating to arrest, detention, assessment and care plan arrangements under the Mental Health Act 1983.
	Local mental health issues, ranging from resources to specific care management reviews are addressed through four locally based multi-agency "Mentally Disordered Offender (MDO)" groups. A county level Multi-Agency Public Protection Panel (MAPPP) provides for a multi- agency problem solving approach to the management of high risk and potentially dangerous mentally disordered persons. These are linked to a Peninsula (Devon and Cornwall) Criminal Justice Strategies Group.
	Informal case review meetings may be called at short notice by any of the representative bodies on the MDO groups when an actual or potential case management problem is identified. Such meetings allow for joint agency agreement on appropriate early intervention and, if necessary, referral to an MDO group or MAPPP.
	Formal multi-agency information exchange protocols are still being developed for lower risk patients, but the Devon Approved Social Worker (out of hours) Service ensures that Devon and Cornwall police officers have 24 hour access to professional, informed advice on any known individual if required.

European Arrest Warrant

Gwyneth Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what changes in the text of the European arrest warrant have been made since it was debated in the House; and if he will place the new text in the Library.

Bob Ainsworth: On 10 December 2001 European Standing Committee B held a debate on the basis of document 13425–01, COPEN 65, which at the time was the latest available full English text of the Framework Decision on the European Arrest Warrant. The current text, which reflects discussions at the Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) Council on 6–7 December, is numbered 14867/1/01, COPEN 79 REV 1. This version contains a number of changes. In addition to the revised wording of Article 5(1) concerning guarantees to be given for requests based on convictions in absentia, the most significant changes concern scope (Article 2) and time limits (Article 17).
	The current text and Explanatory Memorandum were deposited in Parliament by the Home Office on 11 December 2001. As a matter of procedure copies of all deposited texts are sent to the House of Commons Library as well as to the Commons European Scrutiny Committee. Version 14867/1/01, COPEN 79 REV 1 was considered by the Committee and cleared from scrutiny on 12 December.

Sentencing

Alan Hurst: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many prison sentences of 28 days or less were imposed by courts in England and Wales in (a) 1998, (b) 1999 and (c) 2000;
	(2)  how many prison sentences of local custody were imposed by magistrates courts in England and Wales in (a) 1979, (b) 1989 and (c) 1999.

Beverley Hughes: The Home Office Court Proceedings database show that 7,586 persons were sentenced to custody for 28 days or less in 1998 in England and Wales. Figures for 1999 and 2000 were 8,553 and 8,525 respectively.
	The expression "prison sentences of local custody" is not recognised.

Death Sentence (Reburial Applications)

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications by relatives of people, upon whom judgment of death was executed, for reburial outside the prison in which they were last confined have been refused since 1979.

Beverley Hughes: It has been the practice since 1965 for successive Home Secretaries to consider such applications sympathetically; none appears to have been refused over the period in question.

Asylum Accommodation Centres

Shona McIsaac: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if (a) education, (b) health care and (c) legal services will be provided on site at asylum seeker accommodation centres; and who will be responsible for the costs of providing such services.

Angela Eagle: Health care and education facilities will be provided on site in the trial accommodation centres and will be funded by the Home Office.
	Legal advice will be available to asylum seekers housed in accommodation centres and may be provided on site, depending on the particular circumstances at each centre. Arrangements at each centre will be decided and funded by the Legal Services Commission.

Asylum Accommodation Centres

Shona McIsaac: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what plans he has to consult local authorities on the proposed siting of asylum seeker accommodation centres;
	(2)  what plans he has to involve residents in the vicinity of proposed asylum seeker accommodation centres in consultation about such plans.

Angela Eagle: Home Office officials are in the process of meeting with planning officials from the local authorities where the potential sites are sited.
	They will, in the near future and in agreement with each planning authority, embark on a consultation exercise with all relevant parties including local authorities, providers of local services and members of the local community.

Immigration Service (Lincolnshire)

Shona McIsaac: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Immigration Service staff are employed in (a) north Lincolnshire and (b) north-east Lincolnshire; and what proportion of those employees speak (i) Arabic, (ii) Hindi, (iii) Urdu, (iv) Farsi/Dari and (v) Pashtu.

Angela Eagle: As at 1 February 2002 there were 12 Immigration Service staff based in north and north-east Lincolnshire.
	The details of the languages spoken by immigration staff of all grades is not held centrally and could be collected only at disproportionate cost. We recognise this shortfall and are in the process of addressing it by creating a database of training received and qualifications held by Immigration Service staff. However, interpreting and translation services for those in the care of the Immigration Service are largely provided by external translators, who are called upon to travel if required.
	As my hon. Friend is aware, we have identified a potential site for an asylum seeker accommodation centre in her constituency. We intend that staff for accommodation centres will be provided by the contractor running the site.

Migrants

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will introduce a quota for all categories of migrant.

Angela Eagle: holding answer 7 February 2002
	Our immigration system is not generally based on applying quotas but on requiring conditions set out in the Immigration Rules and associated concessions, to be met for permission to enter or remain in the United Kingdom to be given. Two exceptions are our bilateral youth exchange scheme with Japan and the longstanding Seasonal Agricultural Workers' Scheme (SAWS) for which there is an annual quota. We plan to introduce new quota-based routes of entry to the United Kingdom. As we said in our White Paper, "Secure Borders, Safe Haven: Integration with Diversity in Modern Britain", published on 7 February:
	"We will build on the principles of [SAWS] to meet the demand for short-term casual labour in other sectors of the United Kingdom economy. As with the SAWS, we envisage quotas will be a key feature of any similar schemes that would be carefully targeted at specific sectors and closely managed. Entry would be for a short period of up to six months and applicants would not have the right to bring dependants with them".
	We also plan to reform the existing SAW scheme.

Illegal Immigrants and Overstayers

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he has taken to remove illegal immigrants and overstayers over the last 12 months.

Angela Eagle: holding answer 7 February 2002
	We have taken a range of measures to apprehend and remove illegal entrants and overstayers. These include a substantial increase in the number of immigration officers engaged on removals work, an expansion of the detention estate, creation of additional immigration arrest teams, the development of a network of reporting centres and the use of chartered flights.
	In line with the police service, the immigration service is embracing the National Intelligence Model as a disciplined tool for using intelligence to drive effective strategy in the delivery of our business objectives, including the removal of overstayers and illegal immigrants. Intelligence lies at the heart of business planning. It provides an accurate picture of the business, the nature and extent of the problems, trends and where the main threats lie.
	The most recent published figures show that in the calendar year 2000 there were 8,370 persons removed from the United Kingdom after enforcement action had been initiated. This includes those persons who departed voluntarily after enforcement action had been initiated against them, or who left under an Assisted Voluntary Return Programme.
	Additionally, 38,275 persons were refused leave to enter at port and subsequently removed in 2000.

Life Sentences

Paul Stinchcombe: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the offences for which (a) men and (b) women are serving life sentences in England and Wales; and how many are serving such sentences for each offence.

Beverley Hughes: The number of men and women serving life sentences in England and Wales at 31 December 2001 and the offences for which they were sentenced are shown in the table.
	
		
			 Offence Males Females 
		
		
			 Murder 3,399 125 
			 Other homicide and attempted homicide 122 7 
			 Manslaughter 159 6 
			 Rape 468 0 
			 Wounding 265 6 
			 Arson 94 16 
			 Buggery and indecent behaviour between males 36 0 
			 Other sexual offences 12 0 
			 Gross indecency with children 2 0 
			 Kidnapping 22 0 
			 Robbery 124 0 
			 Other offences of violence against the person 68 0 
			 Drug offences 4 0 
			 Burglary 12 0 
			 Affray 2 0 
			 Other thefts 2 0 
			 Threatening/disorderly behaviour 1 0 
			 Cruelty to children 1 0 
			 Other criminal offences 25 0 
			 Offence not recorded 5 0 
			  
			 Total number of inmates 4,823 160

Life Sentences

Paul Stinchcombe: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many women are serving (a) mandatory and (b) discretionary life sentences in England and Wales for non-homicide offences.

Beverley Hughes: There were (a) 125 women serving mandatory life sentences and (b) 35 women serving discretionary life sentences on 31 December 2001.
	Under section 2 of the Crime (Sentences) Act 1997 offenders convicted of a second serious sexual or violent offence must be sentenced to life imprisonment. These sentences are known as automatic life sentences. There is currently no centrally held data to differentiate between automatic and discretionary life sentence inmates. Mandatory life sentences are passed for murder only.

Life Sentences

Paul Stinchcombe: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many men are serving (a) mandatory and (b) discretionary life sentences in England and Wales for non-homicide.

Beverley Hughes: There were (a) 3,399 men serving mandatory life sentences and (b) 1,424 men serving discretionary life sentences on 31 December 2001.
	Under section 2 of the Crime (Sentences) Act 1997 offenders convicted of a second serious sexual or violent offence must be sentenced to life imprisonment. These sentences are known as automatic life sentences. There is currently no centrally held data to differentiate between automatic and discretionary life sentence inmates. Mandatory life sentences are passed for murder only.

Immigration and Nationality Directorate (Lost Passports)

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many passports were lost by the Immigration and Nationality Directorate in (a) 1999, (b) 2000 and (c) 2001.

Angela Eagle: The information requested is not held centrally and could not be obtained without disproportionate cost. However, the Integrated Casework Directorate's (ICD's) Return of Passport Unit, which was set up in October 1999, issued 97 lost passport letters in the year 2000 and 103 in 2001.

Leicestershire Police

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many members there are in the Leicestershire Constabulary, broken down by rank; and how many are (a) women, (b) black and (c) Asian.

John Denham: The information in the tables has been provided by the Chief Constable and reflects the position in the Leicestershire Constabulary on 8 February 2002.
	
		Male (full-time equivalents)
		
			  Rank  White Black Caribbean Black African Black other  Chinese  Pakistani  Indian  Other  Total 
		
		
			 Chief Constable 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 
			 Deputy Chief Constable 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 
			 Assistant Chief Constable 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 
			 Chief Superintendent 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 8 
			 Superintendent 6 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 7 
			 Chief Inspector 17 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 18 
			 Inspector 80 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 83 
			 Sergeant 239 1 0 0 0 0 8 1 249 
			 Constable 1,294.3 11 3 7 1 8 22 13 1,359.3 
			 Total 1,647.3 14 3 8 1 8 31 15 1,727.3 
		
	
	
		Female (full-time equivalents)
		
			  Rank  White Black Caribbean Black African Black other  Chinese  Pakistani  Indian  Other  Total 
		
		
			 Chief Constable 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Deputy Chief Constable 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Assistant Chief Constable 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 
			 Chief Superintendent 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Superintendent 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 
			 Chief Inspector 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 
			 Inspector 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 
			 Sergeant 20.8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 20.8 
			 Constable 299.6 1 0 3 0 2 5 3 313.6 
			 Total 329.5 1 0 3 0 2 5 3 343.5 
		
	
	
		Total (full-time equivalents)
		
			  Rank  White Black Caribbean Black African Black other  Chinese  Pakistani  Indian  Other  Total 
		
		
			 Chief Constable 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 
			 Deputy Chief Constable 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 
			 Assistant Chief Constable 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 
			 Chief Superintendent 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 8 
			 Superintendent 8 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 9 
			 Chief Inspector 19 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 20 
			 Inspector 84 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 87 
			 Sergeant 259.8 1 0 0 0 0 8 1 269.8 
			 Constable 1,593.9 12 3 10 1 10 27 16 1,672.9 
			 Total 1,976.8 15 3 11 1 10 36 18 2,070.8

Asylum Seekers

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will (a) list the sites which are being considered by his Department to build accommodation centres for asylum seekers and (b) list sites which have already been considered and have been deemed unsuitable.

Angela Eagle: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Mid-Worcestershire (Mr. Luff) on 11 February 2002, Official Report, column 57W.
	So far, none has been deemed unsuitable.

Asylum Seekers

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what criteria the Government have set for selecting sites for accommodation centres to house asylum seekers within the UK; and which of these criteria have been met by RAF Turnhouse in Edinburgh.

Angela Eagle: The criteria are set out in the answer I gave the hon. Member for Mid-Worcestershire (Mr. Luff) on 7 February 2002, Official Report, column 1134W. The Royal Air Force (RAF) Turnhouse site appears to meet these initial criteria.

Asylum Seekers

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people seeking asylum have been located in the Portsmouth, South constituency since the introduction of the Government's dispersal policy; and if he will make a statement.

Angela Eagle: Figures are not available by constituency for those asylum seekers accommodated by the National Asylum Support Service (NASS).
	Statistics from NASS for the end of September 2001, show that 150 1 , 2 asylum seekers (including dependants) were being supported in NASS accommodation in Portsmouth.
	1 Figure rounded to the nearest 10.
	2 Cases where support has been ceased are excluded from this figure.

Essex Police Authority

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the complement is for Essex Police Authority; and how many officers were in post at 31 December 2001.

John Denham: The chief constable of Essex Police informs me that the full time equivalent strength at 31 December 2001 was 2,978.
	Essex police continue to recruit strongly. Force strength rose by 119 officers (4.2 per cent.) to 2,937 in the year to 30 September 2001 and the information provided by the chief constable shows a further strength increase.

Arthur Andersen

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent discussions he has had with Arthur Andersen about terminating contracts.

Angela Eagle: The Home Department does not currently hold any contracts with Arthur Andersen and therefore no discussions on termination have taken place.

Parliamentary Questions

James Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer of 16 November 2001, Official Report, columns 963–64W, on police resignations; if he will make a statement reconciling the figures for resignations in 1996–97 with the figures given in a previous answer to my Friend the right hon. Member for Maidstone and The Weald (Miss Widdecombe) of 11 December 2000, Official Report, column 64W (UIN: 41401).

John Denham: The figures for total police wastage and police resignations given in the answer to the right hon. Member for Maidstone and The Weald (Miss Widdecombe) of 11 December 2000, Official Report, column 64W, were those collected by the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics Directorate (RDS) and published as Police Personnel Statistics. For the purpose of these statistics, wastage is collected on a headcount basis (ie the number of persons) in the following categories: retirements, resignations and other. Other wastage includes officers transferring to forces outside England and Wales, but not those transferring to forces within England and Wales.
	In addition to the information collected by RDS, Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) collects information annually about wastage from the police service broken down into the following categories:
	Dismissals from force (including requirements to resign)
	Voluntary resignations
	Medical retirements
	Ordinary retirements
	Transfers from force
	Deaths.
	Forces are asked to provide these figures on a full-time equivalent basis, not on a headcount basis. The HMIC category "Transfers from force" includes transfers to any other force.
	There is no specific category of resignation for medical reasons. If an officer is permanently disabled for police duties there is provision for retirement on ill-health grounds. The number of such medical retirements is recorded in the HMIC statistics. In the circumstances the answer of 16 November 2001, Official Report, column 963W showed the number of medical retirements and the number of officers who left the police service for other reasons—ordinary retirements, dismissals including requirements to resign, and voluntary resignations.
	As the two sets of statistics collected by RDS and HMIC are gathered on a different basis, they cannot be reconciled directly with one another. We are aware of the inconsistent basis between the two sets of figures and established a task force to consider these issues. The task force report was issued for consultation on 18 December 2001. The report of the task force proposes a comprehensive revision to the current requirements on police personnel statistics. Following consultation with the police service we will implement the necessary changes from September 2002.

West Mercia Police

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans the Government have to increase funding for West Mercia police to the average level for English shire forces.

John Denham: I announced the police funding settlement for 2002–03 on 30 January. Through the settlement West Mercia will receive grant of £101.3 million, an increase of 2.3 per cent. over this year. The average increase for English shire authorities is 2.5 per cent.
	In addition, the West Mercia Police Authority will receive £3.5 million through the Crime Fighting Fund, £2.3 million through the rural policing fund and £2.8 million capital allocation.
	Grant for police authorities is mainly determined by the police funding formula. The formula aims to allocate resources fairly between authorities, taking account of the circumstances of each. The formula has many strengths and is generally acceptable to much of the policing community. It does however have well recognised limitations and we have decided to undertake a wide ranging review of the formula to ensure that it satisfactorily allocates funding in future. I intend that, where possible, changes to the formula should be introduced in time for the 2003–04 police funding settlement.

Zimbabwe

Michael Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which members of the Zimbabwe Government and their family members (a) hold and (b) are entitled to hold British passports.

Angela Eagle: holding answer 14 February 2002
	We have no record of having issued a British passport to any current members of the Zimbabwe cabinet. Eligibility for British passport facilities depends on the application of the terms of the British Nationality Act 1981 to the facts of a person's birth and descent. This information in respect of members of the Zimbabwe Government and their families is not held by the Passport Service. I understand that Zimbabwean nationality law now prohibits dual nationality and that in order to retain Zimbabwean nationality, Zimbabweans were required by January this year to renounce formally any other nationality they held.

Cheshire Police Authority

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  if he will make a statement on the level of the Cheshire Police Authority's grant within the 2002–03 provisional settlement; and what (a) representations he has received and (b) assessment he has made of the implications of the level of grant increase for (i) the effective policing of Cheshire and (ii) the future level of council tax to be levied in Cheshire;
	(2)  what representations he has received about the 2002–03 provisional grant settlement for the Cheshire Police Authority.

John Denham: The provisional police funding settlement was announced on 4 December 2001. Representations were subsequently received from Cheshire Police Authority and from Cheshire MPs.
	I announced the final police funding settlement for 2002–03 on 30 January. Through the settlement Cheshire will receive grant (Home Office and the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions (DTLR) grant) of £99 million. This is an increase of £2.4 million or 2.5 per cent. over 2001–02. In addition Cheshire will receive £3.3 million through the Crime Fighting Fund, £0.2 million through the Rural Policing Fund and £2.7 million capital allocation.
	It is a matter for the police authority to set a budget and council tax.

Police Pay and Pensions

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the level of increase in grant settlement necessary for police authorities to cover police service personnel pay and pensions; and if he will make a statement.

John Denham: Police pay and pensions costs are taken into account when the level of funding for the police service is taken into consideration during each spending review.

Police

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many full-time police officers there were in Wales in each year since 1997.

John Denham: Police numbers for Wales since 1997 are set out in the table. On 30 September 2001 Wales had record numbers of officers.
	
		
			 Year Number of officers(87) Number of civilian support staff(87) 
		
		
			 31 March 1997 6,592 2,455 
			 31 March 1998 6,617 2,429 
			 31 March 1999 6,646 2,559 
			 31 March 2000 6,632 2,457 
			 31 March 2001 6,873 2,706 
			 30 September 2001 7,134 2,829 
		
	
	(87) Strength is full-time equivalents.

Drug Traffickers

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much is expected to be recovered by the confiscation of assets of drug traffickers in each of the next five years; and if he will estimate the percentage that this will represent of the total value of illegal drug sales.

Bob Ainsworth: The national Asset Recovery Strategy, which I announced on 28 November, sets out the Government's objectives for meeting the challenging financial investigation target of recovering £60 million in receipts from asset recovery orders of all kinds by the 2004–05 financial year, compared with £29.5 million during 1999–2000. This would achieve the Government's objective of doubling the amounts recovered from drug traffickers and other major criminals. We estimate that between a half and two thirds of these receipts will come from drug trafficking cases.
	It is not possible to provide a meaningful estimate of the percentage these receipts will represent of the total value of illegal drug sales. What I can say is that the value of such sales is very much greater even than the increased receipts set out in the current target, but that effective application of the new powers in the Proceeds of Crime Bill, including those that will be exercised by the proposed new Assets Recovery Agency, should enable a major increase in the recovery of drug trafficking proceeds. Targets in this field will be reviewed when the strategy has operated for a year, in the light of the outcome of the Bill's passage.
	A copy of the strategy is available in the Library.

Drug Traffickers

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost was of setting up the unit for confiscation of the proceeds of drug trafficking; and what the anticipated annual cost is of running it.

Bob Ainsworth: The Proceeds of Crime Bill, which is shortly to have its Report and Third Reading Stages in the House of Commons, provides inter alia for the setting up of an Assets Recovery Agency. The agency will be empowered to apply for confiscation orders in relation to any category of crime, including drug trafficking.
	As I explained in my answer to the hon. Member for Poole (Mr. Syms) on 11 December 2000, Official Report, column 837W. It is currently estimated that the agency will cost £3 million to set up, with running costs of some £13 million per annum. These estimates are subject to revision as planning for the agency progresses.
	Based on current assumptions about caseloads and amounts available for recovery, the Government expect that the agency's receipts will exceed its running costs.

Juvenile Offenders

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many secure unit places for juvenile offenders in (a) young offender institutions, (b) local authority secure units and (c) secure training centres there are in (i) England and Wales and (ii) Greater London; what the occupancy rates are for each; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: holding answer 14 February 2002
	The Youth Justice Board for England and Wales commissions and purchases secure accommodation for remanded and sentenced young people. They have provided the following information. The table details the number of secure juvenile places within England and Wales and Greater London and the occupancy rates on Thursday 31 January 2002.
	
		
			 Type of secure accommodation Number of places Percentage occupied 
		
		
			  England and Wales 
			 Young offender institution 3,072 84 
			 Local authority secure unit 256 95 
			 Secure training centre 130 85 
			
			  Greater London 
			 Young offender institution 240 93 
			 Local authority secure unit 16 100 
			 Secure training centre 0 —

TETRA

David Heath: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will place a copy of the full TETRA standard specification documents in the Library.

John Denham: The suite of documents which comprise the Terrestrial Trunked Radio System (TETRA) standard specification is published by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI), based in Sophia Antipolis, France. The suite currently contains over 200 separate items and the documents may be downloaded from the ETSI internet website www.etsi.org. These documents are updated as the standard evolves and this method of access ensures that the latest version is always available for consultation. Alternatively, the documents may also be accessed via the library of the British Standards Institute, 389 Chiswick High Road, London W4 4AL Tel: +44 (0) 20 8996 7004, Fax: +44 (0) 20 8996 7005.

TETRA

David Heath: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to commission further investigations into possible health risks associated with the use of the TETRA communications system by the emergency services.

John Denham: In early 2001, the Home Office commissioned a report from the National Radiological Protection Board on the potential health risks from Terrestrial Trunked Radio System (TETRA) technology.
	The report concluded it was unlikely that the special features of TETRA posed a hazard to health and made recommendations for further research in the remaining areas of uncertainty. The Home Office has accepted the report and is taking forward all its recommendations in a comprehensive programme of work which is already well under way. This includes a large study commissioned by the Home Office from the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory on the possible effects of TETRA signals on cell biology. The initial results of this work are expected by April, 2002.

TETRA

David Heath: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what advice he has given to police officers to reduce the possible health risks of using TETRA handsets.

John Denham: The Home Office has issued guidance to police forces recommending a maximum output power of 1 watt for Airwave Terrestrial Trunked Radio System (TETRA) handsets.
	This power limit ensures that transmissions from the handsets comply with exposure guidelines.

TETRA

David Heath: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many TETRA masts (a) have been and (b) are due to be set up in constabularies using the Airwave Communications system.

John Denham: The number of Terrestrial Trunked Radio System (TETRA) masts commissioned by mm02, the operator responsible for the development of Airwave, totalled 369 at 15 February 2002.
	As the Airwave service is still under development, is not yet possible to give a precise figure for the overall number of masts required for England, Wales and Scotland. However, outline planning studies estimate that 3,500 masts will be needed to meet the police requirement for Airwave.

TETRA

David Heath: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent representations he has received from scientific (a) organisations, (b) journals and (c) institutions expressing concerns over the possible health risks of the TETRA communications system; and if he will make a statement.

John Denham: No representations have been received to date from the scientific community, or the scientific press, concerning the possible health risks of Terrestrial Trunked Radio System communications systems (TETRA).

Correspondence

Alan Beith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he will reply to the correspondence from the right hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed dated 30 August and 28 November 2001, regarding delegates to the World Methodist Conference.

Angela Eagle: holding answer 11 February 2002
	I wrote to the right hon. Member on 19 February 2002 on behalf of my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary. I am very sorry for the delay in replying.

Prison Population

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the prison population was in England and Wales on 31 January.

Beverley Hughes: On 31 January 2002 there were 67,870 people in prisons in England and Wales.

Prison Population

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the United Kingdom prison population was in (a) 1990, (b) 1992, (c) 1994, (d) 1996, (e) 1998 and (f) 2000; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: The average population in prisons in England and Wales for every other year between 1990 and 2000 is shown in the table.
	
		
			  Average population 
		
		
			 1990 45,636 
			 1992 45,817 
			 1994 48,794 
			 1996 55,281 
			 1998 65,298 
			 2000 64,602 
		
	
	Information relating to Scotland and Northern Ireland is a matter for my right hon. Friends the Secretary of State for Scotland and the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.

Prison Officers

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many vacancies there are for prison officers in prisons in England and Wales; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: On 31 January 2002 there were 866 vacancies for prison officer grades in England and Wales. Recruitment is currently running in the areas of greatest need, with a programme of recruitment throughout 2002–03.

Victims and Witnesses

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the Home Office reports since 1972 which refer to the treatment of victims and witnesses.

Keith Bradley: Information is not collected centrally on the subject and sub-topics of Home Office reports since 1972. It is likely that a large number will refer to the treatment of victims and witnesses.

HMIC Reports

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list Her Majesty's Inspectorate and Constabulary thematic reports undertaken since 1978.

John Denham: The practice of undertaking thematic inspections is a relatively recent one. The 31 reports published to date on thematic inspections conducted by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) (either alone or in partnership with other inspectorates) are:
	1993
	Equal Opportunities in the Police Service
	The Administration of Firearms Licensing
	1995
	Developing Diversity in the Police Service
	Facing Violence—The Response of Provincial Police Forces
	Obtaining Value for Money in the Police Service
	1996
	An Examination of the Police Force Drugs Strategies: Tackling Drugs Together
	A Review of Crime recording Procedures
	1997
	Lost Time—The Management of Sickness Absence and Medical Retirement in the Police Service
	Masefield's Progress—How Heavy is the Administrative Burden on the Police now?
	Officer Safety—Minimising the Risk of Violence
	Policing With Intelligence—Criminal Intelligence
	A Special Relationship—Police Forces, the Special Constabulary and Neighbourhood Watch
	Winning the Race—Policing Plural Communities
	1998
	Beating Crime
	How Long Youth Cases Take 1
	Road Policing and Traffic
	What Price Policing
	1999
	Casework Information Needs Within the Criminal Justice System Vols. 1&2 1
	Child Protection
	Keeping The Peace—Policing Disorder
	Managing Learning—A study of Police Training
	Police Integrity
	Winning the Race—Revisited
	2000
	Calling Time on Crime
	The Implementation of Section 1 of the Magistrates' Courts (Procedure) Act 1998 1
	On the Record
	Under the Microscope
	2001
	Open All Hours
	A Report on the Joint Inspection of the Progress made in Reducing Delay in the Youth Justice System 1
	Winning the Race—Embracing Diversity
	2002
	Training Matters
	1 Report produced in conjunction with other inspectorate(s).

Drugs (Portsmouth, South)

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the percentage of recorded crime in the Portsmouth, South constituency that was drug-related in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Bob Ainsworth: Information is not available in the form requested. However, the New English and Welsh Arrestee Drug Abuse monitoring (NEW-ADAM), a national research programme, confirms the link between drugs misuse and crime. Summary data published in September 2001 based on eight sites in 1999–2000 found that up to 65 per cent. of arrestees tested positive for an illegal drug with up to 29 per cent. testing positive for opiates (including heroin) and/or cocaine (including crack).
	We are determined to break the link between drug misuse and crime and have introduced a number of initiatives to get offenders out of crime and into treatment. These include, for example, arrest referral schemes and Drug Treatment Testing Orders in the Portsmouth courts of which 47 have been made since they became available in December 2000.
	The allocation of funding to Hampshire constabulary in 2001–02 for arrest referral schemes in their force area, including Portsmouth, was £188,323 for arrest referral workers and £108,240 towards treatment. In addition, we have allocated £166,939 to the Portsmouth Crime and Disorder Partnership in 2001–02 from the Communities Against Drugs fund, to put in place targeted, locally determined measures to strengthen the community, disrupt the local drugs market and generally tackle drugs and drug related crime.

Learning Disabilities

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what additional steps are being taken to protect children and adults with learning disabilities from sexual abuse; and if he will make a statement.

Keith Bradley: Tackling sexual offending is a top priority for this Government and we intend to ensure that the legislative framework enables firm action to be taken against those who abuse others.
	One of the key themes of the Sex Offences Review is the protection of children and vulnerable people. The independent review body recommended new offences to protect the more vulnerable members of our society, including those with learning disabilities, and a new scale of penalties. We are actively considering all of the recommendations in the consultation document on reforming the law on sex offences, 'Setting the Boundaries', in the light of over 700 responses received during the consultation period. We intend to legislate as soon as parliamentary time allows.

Pornography (Sex Offences)

Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what research his Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated into the link between the viewing of pornography and the committing of sex offences.

Keith Bradley: In 1990 the Home Office commissioned a review of available research evidence on the effects of pornography. The report by Howitt and Cumberbatch entitled "Pornography: impacts and influences: A review of available research evidence on the effects of pornography" was published in 1990.
	The review evaluated existing literature and concluded that there was no convincing evidence for a link between pornography and sex offending. It found that trends in sex offending were not clearly linked to the availability of pornography. Also, use of pornography often appeared to post-date the emergence of deviance. However, one of the difficulties of research in this area is that sex offenders are not a homogenous group, and it is therefore difficult to try and establish consistent relationships with external factors (ie in this case availability of pornography) and offending behaviour.

Obscene Publications Act

Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if the Government will review the Obscene Publications Act 1959, with specific reference to its definition of obscene.

Keith Bradley: We have no plans to review the Act.
	Under the Obscene Publications Act 1959, an article is obscene if its effect is, if taken as a whole, such as to tend to deprave and corrupt persons who are likely, having regard to all the relevant circumstances, to read, see or hear the matter contained or embodied in it.
	The existing test is flexible enough to be used in respect of all broadcast and published works, including material published via the internet. It also avoids potential conflict with wider principles of freedom of expression by requiring that the effects of the material on those who are exposed to it should be taken into account. Attempts to reach consensus on changes have been unsuccessful. The most recent of these was by the late Lord Halsbury in 1999 in another place, when he tried to replace the general test by a comprehensive list of proscribed material.

Illegal Activities (Websites)

Gillian Merron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what action he has taken to investigate whether special websites are used by hooligans to orchestrate football violence; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what recent discussions he has had with (a) police and (b) internet service providers to ensure that football hooligan websites cannot be set up;
	(3)  what investigations he has made into the number of football websites with links to paramilitary groups; and if he will make a statement.

John Denham: The National Criminal Intelligence Service (NCIS) monitors websites associated with football hooliganism and shares information with local police forces. There is no evidence that the sites are used to orchestrate football disorder, or that individuals who set up or visit the sites are directly involved in the phenomenon. Some sites do have information technology (IT) links with paramilitary websites and some hooligans do have links with racist and other extremist groups. However, football hooligans come from all social and cultural backgrounds and there seems to be no necessary connection between football disorder generally and political extremism.
	Government and the police liaise closely on all matters connected with football disorder, including on internet and other communication issues. There are no plans to discuss hooligan websites with internet service providers. Material appearing on the internet is subject to the same laws as material distributed by other means, providing it falls within United Kingdom jurisdiction. The sites are monitored and, at present, the material posted on net servers based in the United Kingdom appears to reproduce information and opinions which, however unpalatable, are already published legally in the United Kingdom. Material posted on websites hosted abroad, which includes a number associated with football hooliganism, falls outside United Kingdom jurisdiction. NCIS liaises closely with overseas law enforcement agencies on this matter and mutual assistance arrangements are being developed as a requirement of the G8 Action Plan on 'high tech' crime.

Illegal Activities (Websites)

Gillian Merron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to introduce legislation to define criminal material on websites.

Keith Bradley: Legislation already exists to combat the publication and distribution of illegal material and those laws apply equally online and offline. There are no plans to introduce legislation specific to websites.

Domestic Violence

Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what policies his Department has for dealing with domestic violence; and if he will publish them.

John Denham: The Home Office and the Women's Unit jointly published the policy document "Living without Fear: an integrated approach to tackling violence against women" in June 1999. The document set out the Government's goals for tackling violence against women which include:
	to reduce crimes of violence against women and fear of violence as measured by the British Crime Survey;
	to help today's children grow up in a society where violence is not part of family life and relationships are built on greater mutual respect; and
	within five years to see effective multi-agency partnerships operating throughout England and Wales, drawing on good practice demonstrated in the mentioned publication.
	Within the last two years we have also issued new multi-agency guidance on dealing with domestic violence, specific guidance to health service professionals and a new Home Office circular to the police which has been widely welcomed.
	We have provided £120 million additional capital funding for a new Safer Communities Supported Housing Fund and increased funding for Victim Support. Over £10 million has been provided for a violence against women initiative within the Crime Reduction Programme to help us identify what interventions in what circumstances are the most effective and cost-effective.
	In addition, an informal ministerial group on domestic violence involving representatives from seven key Departments is working closely together to consider the development and implementation of preventative strategies to address domestic violence. The group has highlighted five areas for priority action, which include piloting early interventions by health professionals and ensuring that the civil and criminal jurisdictions co-operate to best effect in domestic violence cases.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

MOX Plant, Sellafield

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what discussions she had with the Governments of (a) the Irish Republic, (b) Norway and (c) Iceland prior to the approval of the MOX plant at Sellafield;
	(2)  what discussions she had with the (a) Executive of the National Assembly for Wales, (b) Executive of the Northern Ireland Assembly and (c) Scottish Executive prior to the approval of the MOX plant at Sellafield.

Margaret Beckett: My officials have had discussions with Irish Government officials about the publication of 1997 data on MOX, and hold six-monthly meetings at which they and the devolved Administrations for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland brief one another on a range of radioactivity issues; but otherwise no such discussion has taken place.
	I also refer the hon. Member to my answer of 4 February 2002, Official Report, column 752W.

Foot and Mouth

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will provide a breakdown of his latest estimate of the total cost to public funds of the foot and mouth outbreak; and if she will make a statement.

Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the estimated final cost is of the foot and mouth epidemic.

Margaret Beckett: I refer the hon. Members to the reply given by my hon. Friend the Lord Whitty, in another place, 4 February 2002, Official Report, (House of Lords), column WA65.

Foot and Mouth

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what arrangements are in place for the extension of rate relief to businesses affected by foot and mouth disease.

Alan Whitehead: Local authorities can give discretionary rate relief to any business suffering hardship. Many authorities have used this power to give rate relief to businesses affected by foot and mouth disease. Normally, the Government meets 75 per cent. of the cost of such relief. However, special arrangements have been in place during 2001–02 whereby the Government have met 95 per cent. or 98 per cent. of the cost of hardship rate relief granted by 151 rural local authorities to small businesses affected by food and mouth disease. As part of the Government's response to the rural task force report on 13 December 2001, we announced that these arrangements would be extended to 31 March 2002. A special grant report giving effect to that extension will be laid before the House shortly. The Government have no plans to extend these arrangements beyond 2001–02, but local authorities will retain their powers to grant hardship relief, with 75 per cent. of the cost met centrally.

Refrigerators

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate she has made of the number of refrigerators per day being added to storage by local authorities; and when she expects appropriate recycling plants to be operating in this country.

Michael Meacher: holding answer 29 January 2002
	It has been estimated that around 2.5 million domestic refrigeration units are disposed of in the UK each year. Not all these arisings will require storage—any fridges in working order may be refurbished for re-sale and re-use on the domestic market. Fridges can also be incinerated in the UK or exported to other Member States for treatment. We anticipate that a specialist fridge recycling plant will be operating in the UK by spring.

Refrigerators

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if it is her policy to require major distributors of refrigerators who collect used refrigerators to return each one to the local authority in the area from which it originated.

Michael Meacher: Most retailers and other distributors no longer collect used refrigerators. We are looking at the options available to reinstate retailer take back. However, it is not my Department's policy to require the return of fridges to the local authority for the area from which they originated.

Airport Runway Capacity

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what discussions she has had with the Department of Transport, Local Government and the Regions concerning proposals to expand airport runway capacity in the South East; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  what arrangements are in place between her Department and the Department of Transport, Local Government and the Regions concerning the timing of the public release of information on the study into airport runway capacity in the South East; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Beckett: holding answer 31 January 2002
	The Government have been considering how to respond to the demand for air travel over the next 30 years and intends to publish a series of regional consultation documents, including one for the south-east and east of England, for public consultation in the spring. These consultation documents will set out possible options for developing airport capacity at airports across the UK. At the same time, to support these consultation documents, the Government intends to make the regional studies and supporting technical documents publicly available. The consultation will be followed by the publication of the Air Transport White Paper at the end of this year.
	I am working closely with my colleague, the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, on all the regional studies, including the south-east and east of England Regional Air Services study, and on the development of the Air Transport White Paper. Our two Departments have developed a framework for working together, to formalise our working and liaison arrangements. This is set out in an exchange of letters between our respective Permanent Secretaries, a copy of which has been placed in the Library of the House. DEFRA will be fully consulted on the content and timing of publication of the consultation documents, the supporting technical material and the White Paper.

Ministerial Meetings (Energy Industry)

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what meetings (a) she and (b) her senior departmental officials have had with Enron and its subsidiaries in the last two years.

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on what occasions she and her Department have held meetings since May 1997 with representatives from (a) BP, (b) Shell, (c) Exxon- Mobil, (d) Enron, (e) Conoco, (f) Texaco and (g) TotalFinaElf; if she will state the purpose of each meeting; and if she will provide details of the outcomes and agreements reached as a result of each meeting.

Margaret Beckett: Ministers and civil servants meet many people as part of the process of policy development and analysis. All such contacts are conducted in accordance with the Ministerial Code, the Civil Service Code and Guidance for Civil Servants: Contacts with Lobbyists. Some of these discussions take place on a confidential basis, and in order to preserve confidentiality, it is not the normal practice of Governments to release details of specific meetings with private individuals or companies.

EAGA

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the complaints procedures EAGA have in force.

Michael Meacher: holding answer 5 February 2002
	EAGA Partnership is one of the two scheme managers for the Government's Home Energy Efficiency Scheme (HEES) in England. HEES is marketed as the Warm Front Team and is the Government's main programme for tackling fuel poverty in the private sector.
	EAGA Partnership's complaint procedure is accredited to British Standard ISO 9002. A copy of the procedure is attached and a copy will be placed in the Library of the House. EAGA is currently reviewing its complaint system and an updated version will be sent to the hon. Member for Stroud and placed in the Library of the House.
	Over 250,000 householders have been assisted since the launch of the Home Energy Efficiency Scheme (HEES) on 1 June 2000. The number of complaints received by the Department since that date concerning EAGA Partnership's three regions is 330 or 0.1 per cent. of work completed.

EU Noise Directive

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the EU Noise Directive; and what restrictions this will place on sources of excessive noise apart from aircraft.

Michael Meacher: The proposed directive relating to the Assessment and Management of Environmental Noise would establish common methods for measuring and assessing environmental noise. As presently drafted it would also require member states to designate authorities to map noise levels in local areas and develop noise action plans. Maps would be publicised locally and local people consulted in drawing up the action plans. The requirement for mapping and action plans would apply to major roads, railways and airports and urban agglomerations. Summary information would be collected by the European Commission and used to inform future Community noise policy. It would not be the purpose of this directive to place restrictions on sources of noise.

Hazardous Waste

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the adequacy of treatment and disposal facilities in place to handle hazardous water and waste banned from landfill under the forthcoming Landfill Regulations.

Michael Meacher: The Department in conjunction with the National Assembly for Wales, the Scottish Executive and the Northern Ireland Assembly has undertaken an assessment of the implications of the landfill directive for the future management of wastes banned from landfill.
	The aims and objectives of the study were:
	to identify and evaluate the potential impact of the landfill directive on the management of hazardous wastes and liquid wastes in the UK, and
	to identify and assess the alternative waste management options that may be available to ensure the continued safe management of wastes for which landfilling will be restricted under the landfill directive.
	The study found that there was sufficient alternative disposal systems (in use or planned) to cope with the large volume of organic process waste streams requiring diversion from landfill. It also suggested that additional facilities might be required for oily wastes, contaminated soils, and inorganic chemical wastes.
	Copies of the study have been disseminated widely.

Chemicals (Controls)

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the proposals being prepared by the European Commission covering control of chemicals in household products.

Michael Meacher: The European Commission presented a White Paper on a Strategy for a Future Chemicals Policy in February last year. This proposes a new regulatory regime for chemicals used in household and other products. We have published the following assessments of it:
	an Explanatory Memorandum on the proposals (23 March 2001);
	a partial Regulatory Impact Assessment (May 2001);
	a report by the Institute for Environment and Health on the Testing Requirements for Proposals under the EC White Paper "Strategy for Future Chemicals Policy" (April 2001).
	These documents have been deposited in the Libraries of both Houses.
	In June last year the UK and other member states agreed Council Conclusions endorsing the White Paper proposals. The conclusions called for the proposals to be strengthened in a number of respects. They emphasised the need for a more streamlined process to obtain the essential information required to speed up action on the chemicals of most concern and to phase out those that pose unacceptable risks with the minimum delay. Ministers also agreed that chemicals that are persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic and those that are very persistent and very bioaccumulative should be added to the list of chemicals of very high concern that will be subject to the most stringent controls.
	Following the agreement of the Council Conclusions a number of working groups made up of stakeholders and representatives from member states were convened to consider in detail how the proposed regulatory system should operate. The Commission is now drawing up proposals for legislation and expects to publish draft proposals later this year.

GM Crops

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the cost of farm- scale trials of GM herbicide tolerant crops is; and what the contribution to the cost from public funds is.

Michael Meacher: The costs of the Farm Scale Evaluations (FSEs) of Genetically Modified Herbicide Tolerant crops are shared between Government and the industry body SCIMAC.
	SCIMAC are responsible for providing, managing and disposing of the crops grown on the test sites. I do not have information on these costs.
	Government collectively meets the costs of the ecological studies carried out by the Research Consortium, which are expected to total about £5.38 million over the five years of the programme.

Mercury Vapour

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate she has made of the amount of mercury vapour emitted in each of the last five years by the burning of mercury (II) thiocyanate in pyrotechnic products.

Michael Meacher: There is a wide range in estimates of the tonnage of fireworks used annually in the UK. However on current information our best estimate is that emissions of mercury from this source may be in the order of 150kg per annum.

Mercury Vapour

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will estimate the amount of mercury vapour emitted in each of the last five years by the detonation of caps in toy cap guns.

Michael Meacher: Currently there is only limited data available on emissions of mercury from toy caps, but it is an area in which we are looking at ways to improve our estimates. Our current best estimate is that emissions from this source may be in the order of 150kg per annum.

Manufacture of 2,4,5-Trichlorophenol

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what quantity of 2,4,5-trichlorophenol was manufactured in the United Kingdom in the latest year for which figures are available.

Michael Meacher: The Department has no records of the quantity of 2,4,5-trichlorophenol manufactured, but we believe it is no longer used (or manufactured) in the UK.

Ozone-Depleting Substances

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what information she has collected on the (a) UK standards and (b) collected standards of the other EU countries on the recovery of ozone-depleting substances; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: The Department published draft UK standards for the recovery of ozone depleting substances from fridges in December last year. These have been widely endorsed and are currently being worked into technical guidance by the Environment Agency. The draft UK standards drew heavily on work already under way with the United Nations (UN) TEAP Task Force and considered those standards and technology used elsewhere, including the German DIN and RAL standards.

Ozone-Depleting Substances

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how recovered ozone-depleting substances removed from the insulation foam from redundant refrigerators and freezers is to be disposed of; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: Under Regulation 2037/2000 controlled ozone-depleting substances must be disposed of by technologies approved by the Parties (to the Montreal Protocol), or by any other environmentally acceptable destruction technology. These technologies include destruction by liquid injection incineration, reactor cracking, gaseous/fume oxidation, rotary kiln incinerators, cement kilns, municipal solid waste incinerators (for foams containing ODS) and radio frequency plasma destruction technology.

Refrigerator Insulation Foam

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the answer given by the Minister of State for the Environment on 31 January 2002, Official Report, column 414, if she will place in the Library the correspondence between the Government and the European Commission regarding the removal of chlorofluorocarbons from the insulation foam of refrigerators.

Michael Meacher: There have only been two pieces of correspondence related to this specific issue exchanged between UK officials and the European Commission. All the other instances referred to in my reply given to the hon. Member on 31 January 2002, Official Report, column 414, were either in the form of minuted discussions at Management Committee on EC Regulations 3093/94 and 2037/2000 or in the margins of another meeting. Since the minutes of Management Committee are produced by the European Commission, we understand that we are not in a position to be able to place them in the Library.
	I have today placed in the Libraries of the House, a faxed letter of 11 September 2000 and a letter of 30 January 2001 from a UK official dealing with the EC Regulation on substances that deplete the ozone layer to officials at the European Commission.

Badgers

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her latest estimate is of the badger population.

Margaret Beckett: There are likely to be in the region of 300,000 to 400,000 badgers in Great Britain. This figure is derived from the National Badger Survey which took place in the mid-1990's.

Angling Licences

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what angling licences are granted for waters where there is a statutory right of navigation.

Michael Meacher: Anyone aged 12 years or over who fishes for salmon, trout, freshwater fish or eels in England and Wales must have an Environment Agency rod fishing licence. Rod licences are required for fishing in both navigable and non-navigable waters. Agency rod licences do not confer a right to fish; a permit from the owner of the fishing rights is required before angling can take place.

River Thames

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether there is a statutory right of navigation along the full length of the River Thames.

Michael Meacher: There is a public right of navigation on the River Thames from Cricklade to the sea, but the river above Lechlade is not fully navigable.

Peat

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what steps her Department is taking to meet the Biodiversity Action Plan target for the replacement of peat in the horticultural industry by 2010;
	(2)  what steps her Department is taking to meet the Biodiversity Action Plan target for replacement of peat in the horticulture industry by 2010.

Michael Meacher: The Biodiversity Action Plan commits the Government to undertake and promote research and development into sustainable alternatives to peat and provide advice on the development and marketing of peat alternatives. The aim of the plan is for 40 per cent. of the total market requirements to be peat free by 2005 and 90 per cent. by 2010.
	Peat is a major constituent of growing media used in gardening and commercial horticulture. It is well suited to a wide range of uses and comes from a variety of sources in the UK, the Republic of Ireland and the Baltic States.
	There has already been some substitution of peat by other materials, such as coir and bark, but there are still considerable difficulties to be overcome in producing alternative growing media of sufficiently reliable and consistent quality to replace peat in the full range of its present uses.
	We are funding seminars to increase awareness of and to examine the potential for using reduced-peat and peat free alternatives and to encourage growers and others to take them up where they are already available.

Peat

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what progress is being made in safeguarding the proposed special areas for conservation of lowland raised peat bogs which are awaiting ratification;
	(2)  what progress has been made in safeguarding the environmental interests of the proposed special areas for conservation lowland raised peat bogs that are still awaiting ratification.

Michael Meacher: Further to my answers of 14 January 2002, Official Report, columns 116–17W, concerning the Hatfield Moor site, I anticipate that English Nature's report on their consultations on the designation of that site and three other sites, together with recommendations to Government, will be presented within the next two months. If justified as Special Areas of Conservation, the sites will be notified to the European Commission and afforded immediate legal protection under national legislation.

Combined Heat and Power

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what costs were incurred in setting up her Department's quality assessment programme for combined heat and power to 31 March 2001;
	(2)  what the anticipated operational costs are of the Department's quality assessment programme for combined heat and power for the financial year 2001–02;

Michael Meacher: The costs incurred in setting up and running the Combined Heat and Power Quality Assurance programme (CHPQA) to 31 March 2001 was around £765,000. The anticipated operational costs of the CHPQA for 2001–02 is around £625,000.

Combined Heat and Power

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what estimates her Department has made of the operational costs for the running of the CHP Club in 2001–02;
	(2)  what costs were incurred in setting up the Department's CHP Club; and what its operational costs were in the financial year 2000–01.

Michael Meacher: The CHP Club provides a one-stop shop for independent information and guidance for potential and new users on the design, implementation, and operation of CHP schemes. Responsibility for the management of the Government's Energy Efficiency Best Practice programme including the CHP Club will soon be passed to the Carbon Trust. The total cost of setting up and operating the CHP Club in 2000–01 was around £200,000. The cost of running the club in 2001–02 is expected to be a similar amount.

Combined Heat and Power

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps she is taking to ensure that the Government's CHP target is reflected in her Department's aims and objectives.

Michael Meacher: The Government target of 10,000 MWe of installed CHP by 2010 will make a significant contribution to DEFRA's objectives to promote sustainable management and prudent use of natural resources domestically and internationally. The CHP target will also contribute to DEFRA's future public service agreement targets.

Combined Heat and Power

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the procedure is by which applicants qualify for inclusion in the Government's quality assessment procedure for combined heat and power; and whether this procedure requires periodic re-assessment.

Michael Meacher: The Combined Heat and Power Quality Assurance programme (CHPQA) provides a practical, determinate method for assessing CHP schemes. Operators are required to self-assess their scheme, based on actual performance data, which is subject to validation and verification. A CHPQA certificate is then issued detailing the parameters qualifying as "good quality" CHP. All CHPQA certificates are valid to 31 December of the year of issue, whereupon applicants must submit a fresh self-assessment based on the previous year's data.

Waste Management

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the (a) levels and (b) mix of waste required to make a modern high-temperature incinerator commercially viable.

Michael Meacher: The levels of waste that make a modern high-temperature incinerator commercially viable will depend on the gate fees charged. Its viability is likely to be enhanced by the availability of sufficient quantities of high calorific value wastes to ensure full combustion of material with lower calorific value.

Landfill

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans she has to reduce the amount of hazardous and industrial waste sent to landfill sites for disposal.

Michael Meacher: The forthcoming landfill regulations which will implement the EC Landfill Directive in England and Wales reduce the amount of hazardous waste going to landfill by banning, from July 2002, the landfilling of hazardous liquid wastes and any hazardous wastes which in the conditions of landfill are explosive, corrosive, oxidising, highly flammable or flammable.
	More widely, in Waste Strategy 2000, we have set a target to reduce the amount of industrial and commercial waste sent to landfill by 2005 to 85 per cent. of that landfilled in 1998.

Annual Environmental Reports

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many of the top 350 companies have responded to the Prime Minister's challenge in October 2000 to publish an annual environmental report by the end of 2001.

Michael Meacher: Not all companies have yet published their reports for 2001, but we currently estimate 71 of the top 350 companies have produced a stand alone environmental report, including quantified environmental performance data, or otherwise published this information.
	A further 84 have also taken at least one step towards meeting the Prime Minister's challenge such as publishing an environmental policy or environmental performance targets. We will be writing to all companies shortly to check our estimates and will make the final tally public as soon as possible.

European Commissioners Communications (EU 2037/2000)

Michael Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will place in the Library copies of European Commissioners Communications received by her Department from June 2001 about matters that were covered under EU 2037/2000.

Michael Meacher: holding answer 11 February 2002
	In June 2001, the European Commission sent the Department minutes of the meeting of the Management Committee on EC Regulation 2037/2000 of 11–12 June 2001. Since the minutes were produced by the Commission, we understand that we are not in a position to make them available to the Library of the House. We have received no other Communications from the Commission regarding matters covered under 2037/2000 since June 2001.

Parishes

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions she has had with the relevant district and borough councils regarding sleeping and barely active parishes under their jurisdiction.

Alun Michael: We have had a great deal of discussion with both the Local Government Association and the Natural Association of Local Councils about how best to promote the level of activity and effectiveness of parish and town councils. We have not had direct discussions with district or borough councils, but our initiatives have received a warm welcome from many local authorities. Our strategy to help parish and town councils develop a new role and give communities the opportunity to shape their future is set out in the Rural White Paper, published in November 2000. We have made considerable progress in putting in place measures to help local councils develop their potential to lead and invigorate their communities. Over the three years this includes: £15 million for Community Service Grants to help projects to maintain or introduce services which are local priorities; £15 million for Parish Transport Grants scheme for small scale projects to meet local needs; a further £5 million to help up to 1,000 parishes draw up their own town or village plans to set out local needs and aspirations. The Countryside Agency and the National Association of Local Councils have published a national training and support strategy for parish and town councils, towards which we have allocated £2 million. In November we published a consultation paper on putting the Quality Parish and Town Council concept into practice. This sets out our detailed proposals for enhancing the role of local councils, giving their communities a better deal on local services and a stronger voice in the decisions that affect peoples lives.

Parishes

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what action she recommends that those parishes deemed (a) sleeping and (b) barely active should take.

Alun Michael: This Government are giving unprecedented encouragement to all parish councils to aspire to the standard of the best, that is why we have put in place a range of measures to encourage all rural communities, parish and town councils to take action to shape their own future. I refer the hon. Member to my answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Stroud (Mr. Drew) of 31 January 2002, Official Report, column 471W, for further information.

Radioactive Waste

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the answer of 21 January 2002, Official Report, column 566W, what records the Department has of (a) the total number of containers, (b) the weight of waste contained within the containers and (c) the proportion of (i) high level, (ii) intermediate level and (iii) low level radioactive waste in each of the 10 North Atlantic disposal sites used by the UK between 1949 and 1982.

Michael Meacher: holding answer 11 February 2002
	The Inventory of Radioactive Waste Disposals at Sea published in 1999 by the International Atomic Energy Authority includes details, provided by the UK, of the weight and activity of the radioactive material disposed of by the UK in each of the sites in the North Atlantic. The total weight and amount of activity dumped at each disposal site are set out in the table. It should be noted that the great majority of this weight (usually around 90 per cent.) was accounted for by packaging.
	
		
			 Disposal site centred on co-ordinates Total weight Total activity 
			 Latitude Longitude (tonnes) (GBq) 
		
		
			 48 30'N 13 00'W 9 37.0 
			 55 20'N 11 20'W 33 222.0 
			 55 08'N 12 10'W 57 148.0 
			 32 37'N 14 05'W 1,453 1,665.0 
			 32 42'N 19 30'W 7,098 131,191.0 
			 32 38'N 20 05'W 4,360 81,141.0 
			 46 27'N 6 10'W 253 6,660.0 
			 45 27'N 6 16'W 5,809 275,243.0 
			 45 27'N 6 36'W 4,392 574,758.0 
			 48 20'N 13 16'W 7,641 4,170,381.0 
			 42 50'N 14 30'W 722 65,601.0 
			 49 05'N 17 05'W 1,878 665,260.0 
			 46 15'N 17 25'W 9,647 8,855,475.0 
			 46 00'N 16 45'W 14,141 20,191,963.0 
		
	
	Around 150,000 packages of radioactive waste were disposed of by the UK in the North East Atlantic between 1949 and 1982. A breakdown of the number of containers dumped at each disposal site is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. I am not aware that any high level radioactive waste was disposed of by the UK in the North Atlantic. The inventory includes details of the actual amount of activity disposed of at each site (as set out in the table), rather than the proportion of the waste which was categorised as low level or intermediate level. This information is not readily available and an estimate could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Radioactive Waste

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the answer of 21 January 2002, Official Report, column 566W, which of the 10 radioactive waste disposal sites in the North Atlantic contains high level radioactive waste by (a) number of containers and (b) weight.

Michael Meacher: holding answer 11 February 2002
	I am not aware that any high level radioactive waste was disposed of by the UK in the North Atlantic. The "Report of the Independent Review of Disposal of Radioactive Waste in the Northeast Atlantic" (HMSO 1984) includes details of the activity of the waste disposed of by the UK, and explains that the disposals carried out between 1949 and 1982 involved low and intermediate level waste. Copies of the report are available in the Library of the House.

Radioactive Waste

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the answer of 4 February 2002, Official Report, column 748W, what efforts (a) have been, (b) are being and (c) will be made to monitor the state and safety of the 10 radioactive waste disposal sites in the North Atlantic used by the UK (i) through the UK's own efforts, (ii) through the OECD, (iii) through OSPAR and (iv) by other authority or means.

Michael Meacher: holding answer 11 February 2002
	The radiological impact of the North Atlantic disposal sites was assessed under the OECD's Co-ordinated Research and Environmental Surveillance Programme (CRESP). The UK played an active part in this programme which ran from 1980 to 1995 and included direct monitoring of the main North Atlantic disposal site, which was used up until 1982. The UK has not been involved in any direct monitoring of the Atlantic disposal sites since that time and we have no plans to do so. With regard to the results obtained under CRESP and the coastal monitoring carried out by the UK, I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 6 February 2002, Official Report, columns 974W. No direct monitoring of the disposal sites has been carried out through OSPAR.
	It should be noted that the drums used in the North Atlantic disposal operations were designed to reach the floor of the deep ocean intact but in the knowledge that the radioactivity would leak out over a period of years and be dispersed into the sea, by which time the radioactivity would have been somewhat reduced by natural decay. Assessments of the radiological impact of the disposals undertaken by CRESP and others have taken full account of this.

Carbon Dioxide

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the average amount is of carbon dioxide produced per (a) car, (b) motor vehicle and (c) household in each of the last five years in the United Kingdom.

Michael Meacher: The following table shows the average amount of CO 2 produced per car, per vehicle and per household for each year during the period 1996–2000. (The last complete set of annual data is for the year 2000).
	
		Average CO2 produced each year, per car/vehicle/household -- Tonnes
		
			  Car Vehicle Household 
		
		
			 1996 3.28 4.42 3.77 
			 1997 3.22 4.36 3.43 
			 1998 3.12 4.24 3.48 
			 1999 3.07 4.15 3.43 
			 2000 2.99 4.04 3.42

Renewable Energy

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what forms of renewable energy generation take place on the Government estate.

Michael Meacher: Renewable energy generation technologies used on the Government estate in England include: wind power, active and passive solar thermal systems, "ambient energy" heat pumps and waste heat from incinerators.
	A number of Departments are investigating the possibility of installing renewable energy generation technologies on their estates, such as the Defence Logistics Organisation scheme to install a 12 MW wind energy project in the west of Scotland.

Renewable Energy

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what proportion of electricity used within the Government Estate is supplied from renewable generators.

Michael Meacher: The Government are keen to encourage the use of renewable energy on their estate and a significant step forward was made with the agreement, in May 2001, of the following renewable energy target across Government:
	"All Departments will ensure that, by 31 March 2003, at least 5 per cent. of their electricity comes from renewable sources that are exempt from the climate change levy, or from self generation, provided this does not entail excessive cost. This will rise to at least 10 per cent. supply from such sources by 31 March 2008, but will be reviewed after 31 March 2003 to take account of market conditions following the introduction of the renewables obligation.
	The review of 2003 will include consideration of increasing or bringing forward the target".
	In 2000–01 nine Departments purchased energy from renewable sources. We estimate that the Government estate purchased about 3 per cent. of its electricity from renewable sources that are exempt from the climate change levy. In addition, there were also small purchases of electricity from other "green" sources not exempt from the climate change levy.
	Progress by individual Departments is partly dependent upon the expiry date for their current energy contracts. However, all central Government Departments in England report that they are in the process of considering how they will go about purchasing renewable energy or are considering self-generation options.

Renewable Energy

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what funding has been made available for the development of renewable energy initiatives within urban areas;
	(2)  if she will make a statement on the production of wind turbine renewable energy sources in urban areas.

Brian Wilson: I have been asked to reply
	The Government are taking vigorous action to promote renewable energy, including the introduction of the Renewables Obligation, the exemption of renewable energy from the climate change levy and over £260 million in direct support over the period 2001–04. This action will encourage new proposals for renewable energy generation in urban as well as rural areas.
	Initiatives that may prove particularly relevant for urban areas include the £10 million fund to support renewable energy projects with a strong local community or household interest and the £20 million fund for the first stage of the new scheme to promote solar photovoltaics (PV). These were among the proposals announced by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister in November for the deployment of an additional £100 million for renewable energy. Scheme details are being prepared for publication later in the year. The DTI is already putting over £5 million funding into 30 PV housing projects totalling over 500 homes across the country in its Domestic PV Field Trial.
	Earlier examples of wind energy development in industrial settings include a windfarm in the Mersey docklands and an onshore windfarm at Blyth harbour in Northumberland. As an example of a new, large-scale urban initiative, three national companies, Corus, Northern Electric Generation and AMEC Border Wind have submitted detailed proposals for a 47.5MW windfarm on an industrial brownfield site on the south bank of the River Tees, within the Redcar and Cleveland borough. The proposals have been developed by the companies in close liaison with Regional Development Agency One NorthEast and Redcar and Cleveland borough council. I trust that Government action to encourage the establishment of renewable energy targets for each region will stimulate more brownfield site proposals.
	On a smaller scale, the supermarket chain Sainsbury's, for example, has installed a 600 KW wind turbine to power its distribution depot at East Kilbride, and is promoting renewable energy and energy efficiency at its other sites.

Private Sewers

Paddy Tipping: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what research she has commissioned into the scale of the problems caused by private sewers; when that research was commissioned; what body is undertaking it; and when the research will be published.

Michael Meacher: holding answer 13 February 2002
	We have appointed outside consultants to undertake research into existing private sewers, the main objective of which is to establish their extent, identify and examine the problems associated with them, and to produce workable solutions. The research began in December and is due to last 18 months. Further details will be provided in an announcement that I will be making at the end of this month.

Lead

Bob Laxton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the extent to which lead in the atmosphere has been reduced following the introduction of unleaded petrol.

Michael Meacher: Ambient lead concentrations are currently measured at 23 national monitoring network sites. Sales of unleaded petrol have increased since 1987, particularly as a result of the increased use of cars fitted with catalytic converters. The sale of leaded petrol was banned in 2000. Since the mid 1980s annual average levels of airborne lead in urban areas have reduced by about 95 per cent. from a broad range of 0.18 to 0.81 micrograms per cubic metre to maximum values less than 0.1 (0.008 to 0.032) micrograms per cubic metre in 2000 (latest published data). Annual average level at roadside sites have also declined by about 92 per cent. from the mid 1980s from a broad range of 0.18 to 0.81 micrograms per cubic metre to between 0.022 and 0.032 micrograms per cubic metre in 2000. Annual average rural levels, as expected, are smaller and ranged in 2000 from 0.003 to 0.009 micrograms per cubic metre.
	Results from the Government's monitoring network are published at http://www.aeat.co.uk/netcen/airqual/data/ nonauto/pbdata.html

Regional Events (Isle of Wight)

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which of the regional events to promote "Your Countryside—You're Welcome", will take place on the Isle of Wight.

Alun Michael: It is open to all organisations which have an interest in encouraging visitors to the countryside, including businesses, local authorities and voluntary organisations in any part of England, to be a part of the "Your Countryside—You're Welcome" campaign which is being led by some 50 national organisations. Over 120 organisations are already involved and some imaginative events have been arranged at a regional and local level in many parts of England. I recently wrote to all MPs asking them to engage with local aspects of this initiative, which arises from a recommendations of the Rural Task Force. I have also written to all local authorities. This is not a top-down initiative, nor is it just another publicity campaign. The theme "Your Countryside—You're Welcome" creates an opportunity to publicise local initiatives.
	For instance, the Countryside Agency and the National Trust will hold a joint event at Dimbola Lodge, Tennyson Down on the Isle of Wight on 1 March to celebrate the purchase by the trust, with help from the agency, of land at Farringford Farm: the event will also be used to promote "Your Countryside—You're Welcome". Dimbola Lodge is the former home of Julia Margaret Cameron, the first prominent woman photographer, and the surrounding area was popular with nineteenth-century writers and artists. The land acquired will improve access to the coast and will be managed to enhance its landscape quality and biodiversity. I hope that further events may be arranged later in the year to promote the message that visitors are welcome to the Isle of Wight.

Warm Front Scheme

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what representations she has received on the grant levels available under the Warm Front scheme; and what proposals she has to increase the maximum grants payable.

Michael Meacher: The new Home Energy Efficiency Scheme (HEES), marketed as the Warm Front Team, was launched on 1 June 2000. It provides two levels of financial assistance for the installation of insulation and heating measures dependent upon the needs of the householder and property type:
	HEES—£1,500 for low income households with children under 16, disabled persons or suffering long-term sickness on a qualifying benefit; and
	HEES Plus—£2,500 for over-60s on an income-related benefit.
	In addition, HEES Plus recipients who live in Home Office designated high crime areas may be able to have security measures—door and window locks—provided from a separate Home Office grant.
	The Department recently reviewed the individual grant maximum, taking advice from the scheme managers on expected rates of labour and materials for the coming year and representations from trade associations. As a result of this, from 15 February the grant maximums have been increased from £1,000 to £1,500 and from £2,000 to £2,500 respectively. Eligibility has also been extended to include pregnant women on low-incomes in receipt of a maternity certificate.

Radon Gas

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to her statement of 30 January 2000, Official Report, columns 123–26WH, on radon gas, what the location is of the area that has over 5,300 Bq/m 3 of radon gas emissions.

Michael Meacher: The radon level of 5,300 Bq/m 3 was found in the electoral ward of Cornwood and Sparkwell in South Hams district council's area. I quoted this level to illustrate the highest concentration of radon that has been measured in an area of South Devon. Although radon levels have been found to be significantly above the Action Level (200 Bq/m 3 ) in other parts of South Hams district council and other local authority areas in Devon, the radon concentration measured in Cornwood and Sparkwell is exceptional.

Waste Disposal Incinerators

Andrew Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will take further measures to ensure that emissions from waste disposal incinerators are effectively monitored; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: Emission standards apply throughout the EU to all incineration facilities, applicable to both old and new facilities. Monitoring is carried out to ensure these emission standards are met and to identify breaches of these standards, which may lead to enforcement action.
	We are currently transposing the new waste incineration directive, which will further tighten the emissions standards. The older generation of incinerators has now been replaced with newer, cleaner technology, and most municipal waste incinerators in this country already meet the tough standards that will be introduced with the new directive. Incinerator emissions of all air pollutants are now less than 1.5 per cent. of total UK emissions.
	Additionally the Environment Agency has recently varied the authorisations for existing Municipal Solid Waste Incinerators to reduce the dioxin emission limit to 0.1 ng/m 3 (ie no more than one part in 10 billion). This is ahead of the timetable required by the recently adopted waste incineration directive. At this stage we do not consider that further measures are required.

Grazing

Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if the Government intend to change the rules on common grazing rights after the Bettison v. Langton ruling in 1998.

Alun Michael: Following a judgment delivered in another place in the case of Bettison and Others v. Langton and Others on 17 May 2001, It is conclusive in law that rights of common for grazing, registered for a fixed number as required by the Commons Registration Act 1965, are severable from the land to which they were originally attached. In the consultation paper "Greater Protection and Better Management of Common Land in England and Wales" launched in February 2000, the Government included an outline proposal to prevent severance of rights of common grazing. We hope to announce our conclusions on this, and all the other issues raised in the consultation paper, in the spring.

Grazing

Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will take steps to prevent people using common grazing as a transit stop for sheep and cattle.

Alun Michael: Powers already exist to control the unlawful turning out of animals on common land. The landowner or the holders of common rights could take action in the courts to prevent this activity. Where the owner of registered common land is not known, any local authority in whose area the common lies has a discretionary power under section 9 of the Commons Registration Act 1965 to act in the capacity of the owner to prevent unlawful interference, and may bring proceedings in respect of any offence concerning the land. Where the common is subject to a scheme of management under the Commons Act 1899, the local authority may make byelaws to prevent any person from turning out animals on to the common without lawful authority.

Rights of Way

Julia Drown: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when section 4 of the Countryside Rights of Way Act 2000 will be implemented.

Alun Michael: Section 4 of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 came into force on 30 January 2001. It requires the Countryside Agency (in England) and the Countryside Council for Wales to prepare maps of open country and registered common land for the purposes of the statutory right of access under that Act. The Countryside Agency has recently concluded consultation on draft maps for part of the south-east and lower north-west regions. A draft map for southern England is due to be issued in June this year. Further information about the Agency's mapping programme is contained on its website, at: www.countryside.gov.uk/access/mapping/.

HEALTH

Nutrition

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the (a) number, (b) percentage and (c) age of people (i) admitted to and (ii) discharged from hospital who were malnourished, in each of the last five years for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: The tables show figures on the number of admissions and discharges of people whose main diagnosis was malnutrition from 1995–96 to 1999–2000.
	The discharges figures are slightly higher than the admissions figures. This may be that the main diagnosis prior to discharge may be different from the admission diagnosis. For example, a patient could be admitted for treatment of a condition resulting from malnutrition, and moved to another consultant afterwards to be treated for the malnutrition. It is also possible that a patient is admitted for an unrelated condition, but also have malnutrition diagnosed while in hospital and be treated for this before discharge.
	
		Discharges from NHS hospitals in England where the patient's main diagnosis was malnutrition, 1995–96 to 1999–2000
		
			  Malnutrition discharges  
			 Age 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 
		
		
			 0–4 11 13 15 6 11 
			 10–14 7 14 13 15 6 
			 15–44 60 71 59 74 54 
			 45–64 57 45 59 61 67 
			 65–74 43 34 36 47 30 
			 75–84 54 47 45 39 45 
			 85 and over 37 25 27 30 27 
			 Not known 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Total 270 249 253 272 240 
		
	
	Note:
	The main diagnosis is the first of seven diagnosis fields in the HES data set, and provides the main reason why the patient was in hospital. Data in this table are adjusted for both coverage and unknown/invalid data, except for 1998–99 and 1999–2000 which are not yet adjusted for.
	Source:
	Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Department of Health
	
		Discharges from NHS hospitals in England where the patient's main diagnosis was malnutrition, 1995–96 to 1999–2000
		
			   All discharges  
			 Age 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 
		
		
			 0–4 1,131,637 1,111,261 1,131,555 1,126,564 1,107,961 
			 10–14 520,258 504,506 515,462 511,176 506,246 
			 15–44 3,611,179 3,542,691 3,607,351 3,670,575 3,659,975 
			 45–64 2,093,679 2,111,733 2,228,626 2,366,588 2,434,419 
			 65–74 1,377,965 1,368,162 1,432,555 1,489,842 1,527,800 
			 75–84 1,151,994 1,178,939 1,247,991 1,309,570 1,353,941 
			 85 and over 473,121 556,468 603,873 563,039 576,802 
			 Not known 4,445 9,080 16,209 23,156 25,285 
			  
			 Total 10,364,278 10,382,840 10,783,622 11,060,510 11,192,429 
		
	
	Note:
	The main diagnosis is the first of seven diagnosis fields in the HES data set, and provides the main reason why the patient was in hospital. Data in this table are adjusted for both coverage and unknown/invalid data, except for 1998–99 and 1999–2000 which are not yet adjusted for.
	Source:
	Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Department of Health
	
		Discharges from NHS hospitals in England where the patient's main diagnosis was malnutrition, 1995–96 to 1999–2000
		
			  Malnutrition discharges per 100,000  
			 Age 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 
		
		
			 0–4 1.0 1.2 1.3 0.5 1.0 
			 10–14 1.3 2.8 2.5 2.9 1.2 
			 15–44 1.7 2.0 1.6 2.0 1.5 
			 45–64 2.7 2.1 2.6 2.6 2.8 
			 65–74 3.1 2.5 2.5 3.2 2.0 
			 75–84 4.7 4.0 3.6 3.0 3.3 
			 85 and over 7.8 4.5 4.5 5.3 4.7 
			 Not known 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Total 2.6 2.4 2.3 2.5 2.1 
		
	
	Note:
	The main diagnosis is the first of seven diagnosis fields in the HES data set, and provides the main reason why the patient was in hospital. Data in this table are adjusted for both coverage and unknown/invalid data, except for 1998–99 and 1999–2000 which are not yet adjusted for.
	Source:
	Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Department of Health
	
		Admissions to NHS hospitals in England where the patient's main diagnosis was malnutrition, 1995–96 to 1999–2000
		
			  Malnutrition admissions  
			 Age 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 
		
		
			 0–4 11 11 12 5 10 
			 10–14 7 14 12 15 6 
			 15–44 53 65 57 72 54 
			 45–64 56 45 65 63 63 
			 65–74 38 28 30 43 28 
			 75–84 45 43 42 38 41 
			 85 and over 35 27 31 22 24 
			 Not known 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Total 245 234 249 258 226 
		
	
	Note:
	The main diagnosis is the first of seven diagnosis fields in the HES data set, and provides the main reason why the patient was in hospital. Data in this table are adjusted for both coverage and unknown/invalid data, except for 1998–99 and 1999–2000 which are not yet adjusted for.
	Source:
	Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Department of Health
	
		Admissions to NHS hospitals in England where the patient's main diagnosis was malnutrition, 1995–96 to 1999–2000
		
			   All admissions  
			 Age 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 
		
		
			 0–4 1,132,151 1,097,885 1,123,059 1,124,564 1,098,320 
			 10–14 523,318 493,916 509,949 507,001 501,534 
			 15–44 3,585,082 3,496,224 3,547,914 3,636,100 3,619,428 
			 45–64 2,070,659 2,050,262 2,180,458 2,333,056 2,400,880 
			 65–74 1,353,144 1,322,310 1,390,765 1,459,225 1,500,357 
			 75–84 1,122,025 1,129,724 1,196,840 1,271,028 1,319,641 
			 85 and over 456,147 530,710 574,593 539,601 556,687 
			 Not known 4,476 7,929 13,958 18,397 29,097 
			  
			 Total 10,247,002 10,128,960 10,537,536 10,888,972 11,025,944 
		
	
	Note:
	The main diagnosis is the first of seven diagnosis fields in the HES data set, and provides the main reason why the patient was in hospital. Data in this table are adjusted for both coverage and unknown/invalid data, except for 1998–99 and 1999–2000 which are not yet adjusted for.
	Source:
	Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Department of Health
	
		Admissions to NHS hospitals in England where the patient's main diagnosis was malnutrition, 1995–96 to 1999–2000
		
			  Malnutrition admissions per 100,000  
			 Age 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 
		
		
			 0–4 1.0 1.0 1.1 0.4 0.9 
			 10–14 1.3 2.8 2.4 3.0 1.2 
			 15–44 1.5 1.9 1.6 2.0 1.5 
			 45–64 2.7 2.2 3.0 2.7 2.6 
			 65–74 2.8 2.1 2.2 2.9 1.9 
			 75–84 4.0 3.8 3.5 3.0 3.1 
			 85 and over 7.7 5.1 5.4 4.1 4.3 
			 Not known 0.0 0.0 0,0 0.0 0.0 
			 Total 2.4 2.3 2.4 2.4 2.0 
		
	
	Note:
	The main diagnosis is the first of seven diagnosis fields in the HES data set, and provides the main reason why the patient was in hospital. Data in this table are adjusted for both coverage and unknown/invalid data, except for 1998–99 and 1999–2000 which are not yet adjusted for.
	Source:
	Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Department of Health

Strategic Health Authorities

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health who will be responsible for the appointment of the chief executives of the new strategic health authorities.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 15 November 2001
	The appointment of the chief executives designate of strategic health authorities was through a process of open competition. The chief executives posts were advertised nationally. The appointment process included the NHS chief executive, regional commissioners from the national health service Appointments Commission, the directors of health and social care in the Department, patients' representatives and the health authority chairs designate. The NHS chief executive had overall responsibility for the process. Chief executives will be formally appointed to health authorities on the basis of their franchise plans, following the establishment of the new health authorities in April. Franchise plans will specify how chief executives propose to deliver the functions for which the health authorities are responsible.

Health Council

Jimmy Hood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the outcome was of the Health Council held in Brussels on 15 November; what the Government's stance was on each issue discussed, including its voting record; and if he will make a statement.

Hazel Blears: My right hon. Friend the Minister of State for Health represented the United Kingdom.
	The Council reached political agreement to adopt a common position on the directive setting standards of quality and safety for blood and blood components. Although a few member states were disappointed that there were no strict requirements for donations to be voluntary and unpaid agreement was reached on an acceptable compromise form of words.
	In the orientation debate on the directive on tobacco advertising and sponsorship all the delegations, which spoke, stressed the need to ensure that its basis be legally sound so that it is not struck down by the European Court Judgment as the previous directive had been. The UK, along with other member states expressed support for the directive. The UK raised concerns that global sponsorship should benefit from derogation until 1 October 2006. The UK also mentioned the need to ensure that the directive was compatible with other legislation pertaining to e-commerce. There was some discussion of the scope of the directive and Commissioner Byrne explained that it did not cover indirect advertising. Some states felt the advertising ban should not apply to local press and publications. There was no opposition to the inclusion of advertising for cigarette papers within the scope of the ban.
	Member states discussed the health aspects of bio-terrorism agreed presidency conclusions on the need for a comprehensive programme of co-operation in this area; strengthening existing networks and exploring other opportunities to ensure a coherent approach in support of national plans.
	Commissioner Byrne made a statement on recent developments in cross-border healthcare. Member states expressed concern over recent ECJ rulings that treaty provisions on freedom to provide services applied to health services, which had previously been thought to lie outside treaty competence. The Commission called for further discussions on the detail and will produce a discussion document for the Spanish presidency conference in February. The UK explained that the rulings had implications for domestic legislation, to which we were responding, and that there was a need to look further at competence boundaries. Other member states were of the same opinion.
	Commissioner Byrne gave an update on preparations for the next round of negotiations on the World Health Organisation framework convention on tobacco control. He indicated that the Community position on agriculture subsidies would need to be updated to take account of references to phasing out of tobacco subsidies in the communication to Gothenburg on sustainable development. The planned Commission communication on 'Health and Poverty policy' will help pave the way for financial support for implementation of the convention in developing countries.
	Council adopted unanimously a Recommendation on the prudent use of anti-microbial agents; and Conclusions on stress and depression related problems.
	The Council noted the Commission's updates on the revision of the medical devices Directive 93/42/EEC and the current state of play in the process of setting up the European Food Authority.
	Commissioner Byrne explained that the Scientific Committee investigating the impact of electro-magnetic fields thought there may be a link with DNA damage and multiple exposure, but there was insufficient evidence as yet. The Commission will recommend further studies to fill the knowledge gaps.

Patient Consultations

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average patient consultation times were in each health authority area for (a) general practitioner and (b) hospital consultant appointments in the last 12 months for which figures are available.

John Hutton: holding answer 29 November 2001
	The data are not collected either routinely or by health authority. The latest figure available, for general practitioners only, was in the GP Workload Survey of 1992–93. This showed the average GP consultation time with a patient was 8.4 minutes.

Public Service Agreements

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on progress in meeting the Public Service Agreement target of efficiency and other value for money gains in personal social services expenditure of two per cent. in 1999–2000 and 2000–01 and three per cent. in 2001–02.

Jacqui Smith: Information provided by councils during in-year monitoring suggests that for social services in England the estimated efficiency gain was 2.1 per cent. for 1999–2000, 2.3 per cent. for 2000–01 and 2.5 per cent. for 2001–02. The total estimated efficiency gain over the three years was therefore 7.1 per cent, all but meeting the total of the efficiency targets over three years of 7.2 per cent.

"Removing Barriers"

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer of 15 October 2001, Official Report, column 1042W, concerning the report, "Removing Barriers", which of the report's recommendations were acted upon and with what result.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 5 November 2001
	The two recommendations included in the report which related to the Department of Health were that there should be additional funds provided to local authorities and there should be a dialogue between the Department of Work and Pensions, the Local Government Association and the Department.

Pensioner Mobility and Safety

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what initiatives there are to improve pensioner mobility and safety.

Jacqui Smith: We recognise the importance of improving and maintaining the mobility and safety of older people. A number of initiatives within both health and social care will contribute to these aims. Of prime importance are the National Service Frameworks for Older People and Coronary Heart Disease, which stress the importance of physical exercise. Other initiatives of particular importance to older people include intermediate care and the integration of community equipment services. Also, to reduce the incidence of serious injuries caused by falls in older people, the Department is funding several pilot schemes that help frail older people in nursing homes and sheltered accommodation improve their ability to walk without falling.

EU Health Expenditure

Howard Flight: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his latest assessment is of the average (a) private, (b) public and (c) total spending on health in EU member states expressed as a percentage of GDP; and what he expects those figures to be in 2004–05.

John Hutton: The latest figures for the European Union member states are as follows:
	
		Average health care expenditure as a percentage of gross domestic product
		
			 Expenditure 1998 
		
		
			 Private 2.0 
			 Public 5.9 
			 Total 7.9 
		
	
	Source:
	OECD data 2001
	There are no projections for changes in the balance between public and private health care spending. There is no evidence to suggest that in 2004–05 the average total health spending as a percentage of gross domestic product will be any different to current levels.

Ambulances

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the average time ambulance crews have waited over the last 12 months with the patients they have brought to the accident and emergency unit at Oldchurch hospital in Romford.

John Hutton: Ambulance crews wait longer at Oldchurch hospital before they are ready to go to their next call than at other London hospitals. While it is not acceptable that patients are kept waiting before being booked in at accident and emergency, they are receiving medical care during this time.
	The London Ambulance Service (LAS) is working together with the local NHS organisations to further improve turnaround times. The LAS records turnaround times as the time taken from the crew arriving at the hospital to telling central ambulance control that they are ready to receive another call. This includes any time taken to complete paperwork on the patient, clean the vehicle, do a clinical handover to A&E staff or have a bathroom break.
	Action being taken to improve turnaround times at Oldchurch hospital include:
	A London Ambulance Service liaison officer based at Oldchurch to work closely with A&E staff to identify where the hold-ups are for patients in the handover system.
	A process mapping exercise being undertaken by Barking and Havering health authority to look at patient access to A&E to see where are the hold-ups in the system.
	Recent additional funding will help address pressures in A&E and emergency services.
	On 25 October 2001, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced a £118 million investment for reducing long waits in A&E. This includes £50 million to implement the reforming emergency care strategy and £40 million to fund an additional 600 A&E nursing posts. Out of this money, Barking, Havering and Redbridge Hospitals national health service trust will receive £154,206 this year to provide additional nurses for its two A&E departments and a further £632,243 next year.

Child Benefit

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he plans to give child benefit to foster carers who look after children under the age of 16.

Malcolm Wicks: I have been asked to reply.
	Financial support for looked after children, including those placed with foster carers, is proved by local authorities under section 23 of the Children Act 1989. Foster carers receive an allowance under section 23 and are therefore not eligible for Child Benefit.

24-hour Community Services

Debra Shipley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on 24-hour community services care.

Jacqui Smith: People's needs can arise at any time and we expect councils with social services responsibilities to have arrangements in place to enable them to respond appropriately and promptly.
	A recent report "Out Of Hours" from the social services inspectorate recommends councils should review their out of hours services. The report gives a range of good practice examples.
	In addition, the Care Direct helpline, which is currently being piloted, will provide information and practical help for older people around the clock, and the NHS Plan announced our commitment to establish crisis resolution teams which can be accessed 24 hours a day by those with specialist mental health needs. The provision of intermediate care should include a rapid response service, available out of hours, to ensure people may remain independent at home.

Public-Private Partnerships (Trusts)

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Chancellor of the Exchequer's answer of 12 December 2001, Official Report, column 889W, on capital assets, if he will place in the Library information on the accounting treatment of the public-private partnership projects relating to (a) Leicestershire and Rutland Headquarters NHST, (b) York Health Services NHST Provision of MRI Service, (c) Leeds Community and Mental Health NHST Information System, (d) Rotherham General Hospitals NHST Entrance Redevelopment, and (e) Royal National Orthopaedic NHST; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: We have today placed in the Library information on the accounting treatment of the public- private partnership (PPP) projects for Royal National Orthopaedic National Health Service Trust; York Health Services NHS Trust (provision of Magnetic Resonance Imaging service); Leeds Community and Mental Health NHS Trust (Information System) and Rotherham General Hospitals NHS Trust Concourse.
	There is no formal written audit opinion for Leicestershire and Rutland Headquarters NHS Trust although the accounting treatment of this building has regularly been discussed with the trust's auditors. The trust have confirmed that it is accounted for as an operating lease.

Mental Health

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many hospital admissions there were in the most recent year for which figures are available in respect of (a) a disabling anxiety disorder, (b) clinical depression, (c) manic depression and (d) schizophrenia.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 8 January 2002
	The information is not available in the format requested.

Mental Health

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he last met Ministers from the Department for Works and Pensions to discuss ways of helping those with mental health problems to find paid employment.

Jacqui Smith: The Department of Health and the Department for Work and Pensions officials continue to work very closely together to ensure that policies are implemented across Government to empower all disabled people, including those with mental health problems, to make the most of their abilities at work and in the wider society.

Drug Awareness Programmes

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much was spent on drug awareness programmes in England in each of the last 20 years.

Hazel Blears: The Department for Education and Skills (DfES) has made the following amounts available to directly support drug, alcohol and tobacco education in schools through the Standards Fund, Grants for Education and Support Training, and Education Support Grants. The figures in the table are from 1986–87 to 2002–03. DfES may have made moneys available prior to 1986–87 and will have also made other moneys available to support drug, alcohol and tobacco education in schools indirectly, but these figures could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	
		
			  £ million 
		
		
			 1986–87 2.0 
			 1987–88 2.0 
			 1988–95 0 
			 1995–96 5.9 
			 1996–97 5.8 
			 1997–98 5.8 
			 1998–99 7.0 
			 1999–2000 7.5 
			 2000–01 7.5 
			 2001–02 13.1 
			 2002–03 13.2 
		
	
	The following table details the DfES moneys allocated to the Health Education Authority (HEA) through the Standards Fund for Drug Education. These figures taken from the HEA's annual reports indicate how much was spent in the year beginning 1995 to 2000 on drug awareness programmes. These figures are taken from funding for drug education programmes as a whole.
	
		
			  £ million 
		
		
			 1995–96 3.8 
			 1996–97 4.7 
			 1997–98 4.8 
			 1998–99 2.0 
			 1999–2000 1.3 
		
	
	The Department also funded the HEA's National Drugs Campaign. Before 1998–99, the figure for the HEA National Drugs Campaign was £5 million per year. For 1998–99 the Department paid £2.0 million. For 1999–2000 and in 2000–01 the HEA had finished its work.

Ambulance Waiting Times (Havering)

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average waiting time is for an ambulance in the London Borough of Havering, in response to an emergency 999 call.

Hazel Blears: Information about the response times to emergency calls and other requests for transport is collected by the Department by ambulance service and not by borough. Information for London Ambulance National Health Service Trust, which covers the London Borough of Havering, and all other ambulance trusts are contained in the Department of Health Statistical Bulletin "Ambulance Services, England 2000–01". A copy is in the Library and available on the Department's website at www.doh.gov.uk/public/sb0115.htm.

Foster Care

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on which date legislation making unregistered foster care a criminal offence came into force.

Jacqui Smith: Foster carers are not registered with the local authority. Instead they are approved by a panel set up for the purpose of approving foster carers. Once approval is confirmed the local authority is required to enter in a register the particulars for each foster parent in their area who is approved, and each person not being an approved foster parent with whom a child is placed under regulation 11 in their area. This is not intended to mean that foster carers are 'registered' with the local authority.
	In the case of private fostering arrangements, there is no requirement for private foster carers to register with the local authority. Both the private foster carer and the person with parental responsibility have a duty to notify the local authority that a private fostering arrangement is in existence, or about to take place, in order for that local authority to fulfil its obligations under Part 9 of the Children Act 1989.
	The role of the local authority is to satisfy themselves that the welfare of the child is being satisfactorily safeguarded and promoted by supervising, regulating and advising in respect of the private placement. The local authority is required to visit at specified intervals and to report on these visits. They have the power to impose requirements, or if there are serious concerns, to prohibit the fostering arrangement.

Foster Care

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on which date the code of practice on recruiting, selecting, training and supporting foster carers came into force.

Jacqui Smith: Joint work on a code of practice for the recruitment, assessment, approval, training, management and support of foster carers was carried out by the United Kingdom Joint Working Party on Foster Care. The document setting that code out was published in June 1999, and was intended to be implemented from that date.

EU Treatment (English Patients)

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the Government's policy towards the treatment of English patients in other EU countries.

John Hutton: holding answer 22 January 2002
	In the light of rulings of the European Court of Justice, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced in August 2001 that national health service health authorities and trusts could commission treatment for their patients overseas. Since October 2001 three test-bed sites in the south east of England have been working through the legal and practical issues involved in sending patients abroad. The first patients to go abroad for routine NHS-funded surgery travelled to Lille on 18 January. By the end of the test bed scheme in March this year around 200 patients are likely to have travelled to France and Germany for treatment. Guidance for the NHS will be published, based on the experience of the test bed sites.
	The Department plans to launch a tender exercise later this year for surgical procedures overseas, as part of its wider strategy to reduce waiting times and enhance patient choice.
	It is also possible for patients to be referred to Europe under the long-standing E112 arrangements described on pages 36–37 of the Department of Health leaflet "Health Advice for Travellers", copies of which are available in the Library and to the public from post offices.

Secondments

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many staff in his Department have been seconded to jobs in the (a) private and (b) public sector in each of the last four years.

Hazel Blears: Interchange is a key component of the reform agenda. The Modernising Government White Paper committed us to increasing interchange, in particular by bringing in more people on secondment and sending more of our people out. Secondments and attachments are part of the interchange initiative, which promotes the exchange of people and good practice between the Civil Service and other organisations. All sectors of the economy are involved: voluntary, education, health, public and private.
	Central Records are held on the following secondments commenced in the years shown:
	
		
			  Public sector Private sector Total 
		
		
			 1998–99 19 1 20 
			 1999–2000 53 2 55 
			 2000–01 85 1 86 
			 2001–02(88) 31 2 33 
			  
			 Total 188 6 194 
		
	
	(88) To date

Health and Social Care Act

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what announcement he made on the powers in Section 4 of the Health and Social Care Act 2001 to establish and support private firms to undertake tasks within the National Health Service, prior to the conclusion of the Second Reading of the Bill in the House of Commons.

John Hutton: On 6 December 2000, in a press notice which accompanied the announcement of the Health and Social Care Bill in the Queen's Speech, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State said:
	"Primary care is the first port of call for patients. The biggest hospital building programme in the NHS is already well under way, thanks to the success of the Private Finance Initiative. This Bill will provide for a complementary programme of public private partnership to be invested in primary care services—improving access in the most needy areas of the country".

HEALTH

Theft and Fraud

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what additional security measures are planned by his Department to deter and detect theft and fraud.

Hazel Blears: The Department takes theft and fraud prevention very seriously. Our existing arrangements for deterring and detecting theft and fraud include internal control systems, auditor scrutiny, asset holder accountability, and investigation of losses. Some examples of our existing security controls are:
	security awareness training for new entrants
	a range of guides and advice for staff on the electronic notice board
	tight physical security measures on the Department's estate, with 24 hour guarding
	specialists who are responsible for preventing, detecting and investigating fraud
	appropriate action taken against perpetrators.
	Following a recent departmental security review, we have strengthened our arrangements, including:
	the setting-up of a cross-Department senior security management forum to strengthen policy and compliance
	the involvement of a professional specialist unit for the national health service in departmental fraud casework
	an increased input by building managers in countering theft of the Department's assets
	more direct involvement of senior management in security measures
	an annual security awareness week targeted at the entire department and its agencies.

Nursing Care

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many health authorities since 1 October 2001 have revised their contracts with nursing homes to ensure that the payment for free nursing care is passed on to the self- funding resident in the form of a reduced fee.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 30 January 2002
	The guidance on implementation of free nursing care makes it clear that nursing home residents should not be charged for services funded by the national health service and that the NHS locally will develop contracting procedures with homes that the financial benefit of the NHS payment should be discounted in any fee payable by the resident to the home. Information is not available centrally on how each health authority or primary care trust has handled this.

Health Clinic (South Woodham Ferrers)

Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans his Department has to establish an X-ray facility in the health clinic at South Woodham Ferrers.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 30 January 2002
	Maldon and South Chelmsford Primary Care Group put forward a bid towards the end of the 2000–01 financial year to the then National Patients' Access Team (now part of the National Health Service Modernisation Agency) for digital imaging facilities to be made available at South Woodham Ferrers clinic. The National Patients' Access Team considered the bid and although there was some capital funding available at that time unfortunately there were insufficient funds available to fund the purchase of this equipment.
	The overall concept of providing an X-ray facility in the local general practitioner clinic is a good one that would appear to enhance local patient services. However the overall cost of setting up a service with a digital X-ray machine is a lot greater than that of the equipment alone. There would be significant recurring staff and maintenance costs involved in the provision of such a service. The primary care trust would have to be able to meet these recurring costs from within their existing resources. Further more the type of X-rays that could be done out of a main X-ray department is limited to chest and extremity radiography only.
	While the modernisation agency does not have funds available to support this, the PCT may wish to prioritise its own funds to purchase such equipment. The Medical Devices Agency would be able to advise on suitable equipment that could provide a simple service at a lower cost than a full digital system.

Cancer

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of years of life lost following the potential blocking of the use of irinotecan in first line use for advanced colo-rectal cancer; and if this criteria is a feature of NICE assessments;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the NICE guidance on the colo-rectal cancer drugs (a) irinotecan, (b) oxaliplatin and (c) ralitrexel in relation to cancer survival rates; and what figures on European survival rates he has collated.

Yvette Cooper: The National Institute for Clinical Excellence has not yet issued guidance on the appraisal for colo-rectal cancer drugs and the draft guidance is currently subject to appeal.
	Figures on European survival rates from colon and rectal cancers are given in the tables.
	
		Colon cancer—age standardised relative survival (percentage) Europe 1985–89(89)
		
			   Males  Females  
			 Country 1 year 2 year 1 year 2 year 
		
		
			 Austria 75.0 54.7 60.5 44.0 
			 Denmark 63.7 39.2 64.0 42.7 
			 England 61.6 41.0 60.5 41.3 
			 Estonia 51.5 36.5 52.7 38.0 
			 Finland 68.6 47.6 68.8 50.0 
			 France 73.7 51.8 72.5 54.0 
			 Germany 66.4 49.6 70.0 49.9 
			 Iceland 61.6 48.7 67.4 51.8 
			 Italy 67.3 46.9 68.5 47.0 
			 Netherlands 75.7 58.7 72.4 55.7 
			 Poland 43.4 24.8 43.1 22.6 
			 Scotland 61.5 41.1 61.3 41.1 
			 Slovakia 58.7 38.9 54.1 38.3 
			 Slovenia 50.1 33.2 53.9 38.1 
			 Spain 66.6 49.5 66.5 49.4 
			 Sweden 71.4 51.8 73.4 55.2 
			 Switzerland 74.6 52.3 73.7 49.4 
			 Europe 1985–89 66.3 46.8 66.4 46.7 
		
	
	
		Rectal cancer—age standardised relative survival (percentage) Europe 1985–89(89)
		
			   Males  Females  
			 Country 1 year 2 year 1 year 2 year 
		
		
			 Austria 71.7 46.7 75.6 54.2 
			 Denmark 69.7 38.2 69.7 41.5 
			 England 67.4 40.1 68.2 41.0 
			 Estonia 56.8 34.1 61.4 35.5 
			 Finland 80.4 49.3 75.5 46.1 
			 France 78.6 48.4 79.6 48.4 
			 Germany 74.5 43.5 72.4 43.6 
			 Iceland — — 80.8 52.5 
			 Italy 72.4 43.0 74.0 44.2 
			 Netherlands 79.0 52.4 80.4 53.8 
			 Poland 52.9 21.2 53.1 21.9 
			 Scotland 65.5 36.3 65.2 38.7 
			 Slovakia 60.0 35.1 62.4 37.1 
			 Slovenia 60.4 28.6 60.3 31.3 
			 Spain 71.9 43.3 70.3 43.1 
			 Sweden 76.1 49.2 79.5 51.9 
			 Switzerland 75.9 52.6 82.9 51.6 
			 Europe 1985–89 71.9 42.6 71.8 42.9 
		
	
	(89) Survival of Cancer Patients in Europe: the Eurocare-2 Study 1999

MMR

Julie Kirkbride: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people contracted (a) measles, (b) mumps and (c) rubella in each of the last five years.

Yvette Cooper: The number of confirmed cases of measles, mumps and rubella between 1996 and 2000 are shown in the table. The data for 2001 are provisional and are therefore subject to change.
	
		
			  Measles Mumps Rubella 
		
		
			 1996 112 94 2,759 
			 1997 177 180 99 
			 1998 56 118 122 
			 1999 94 366 161 
			 2000 100 697 60 
			 2001(90) 69 753 39 
		
	
	(90) Provisional data

MMR

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the single measles vaccine ceased to be available on the national health service; and for what reason it was withdrawn.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 7 February 2002
	Measles vaccine was replaced with MMR from October 1988. Since then each of the manufacturers have advised the Department that they no longer intended to supply single measles vaccine to the United Kingdom.

MMR

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what figures he has collected for MMR vaccination rates in the October to December 2001 quarter in the UK, broken down by health authority area.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 11 February 2002
	The information requested is not yet available.
	When published the information about coverage rates by region for children who have received a primary MMR vaccination by their second birthday and a booster vaccination by age five is contained in the Statistical Bulletin "NHS Immunisation Statistics, England: 2000/01". A copy of the bulletin will be placed in the Library and can also be found on the Department of Health website www.doh.gov.uk/public/sb0121.htm.

MMR

Julie Kirkbride: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information he has collated on the countries in the EU which license single vaccinations for measles, mumps and rubella.

Yvette Cooper: We do not keep a database of single component MMR vaccines licensed in European Union member states. However, all EU member states recommend a two dose vaccination schedule with MMR vaccine. None routinely recommend single vaccines instead of MMR.
	There is no comprehensive list available of measles, mumps and rubella combination vaccines, two-component vaccines or single component vaccines that are currently licensed in Europe . The Medicines Control Agency has obtained the following information from "The European Drug Index" (1997 edition), from national compendia of licensed medicinal products in France, Germany, Switzerland and Sweden (1998 to 2000 editions), and from two companies. While these references indicate that such products are currently licensed as listed in the named countries, it is not known whether or not they are on the market at the present time.
	In the EU and Switzerland
	There are combined measles, mumps and rubella vaccines currently licensed in all countries in the EU, including the United Kingdom.
	Measles plus rubella vaccines are licensed in at least Italy, Switzerland and the UK.
	Measles plus mumps vaccines are licensed in at least Germany, Portugal and Switzerland.
	At least one measles single component vaccine is licensed in Italy, Belgium, France, Germany, Austria, Netherlands, Switzerland, Portugal, Spain, Greece and the UK.
	At least one single component mumps vaccine is licensed in Italy, Belgium, Germany, Austria, Netherlands, Switzerland, Portugal and the UK.
	There are numerous single component rubella vaccines licensed across the EU, including the UK.

MMR

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information he collects on the number of children who have received single measles, mumps and rubella inoculations since the introduction of the triple MMR vaccine (a) privately and (b) on the national health service.

Yvette Cooper: From the information collected it is not possible to distinguish whether vaccinations were done privately or on the national health service.

Patient Malnutrition

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what statistics his Department collects concerning (a) (i) primary and (ii) contributory diagnosis relating to malnutrition and (b) the weight of patients on (1) admission and (2) discharge from hospital by age.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 4 February 2002
	The Department collects information on in-patients as part of the hospital episodes statistics (HES) system, which contains details of patients admitted to and treated in National Health Service hospitals in England. HES records contain up to seven diagnoses (coded to ICD10 where malnutrition is E40 to E46). The first of these is the main reason that the patient was in hospital; any subsidiary or secondary diagnoses are recorded in the last six fields. Admissions to hospital with a main diagnosis of malnutrition, by age, are given in the table.
	No data are held on the weight of the patient.
	
		Admissions to NHS hospitals in England where the patient's main diagnosis was malnutrition
		
			 Age 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 
		
		
			 0–4 11 11 12 5 10 17 
			 10–14 7 14 12 15 6 5 
			 15–44 53 65 57 72 54 33 
			 45–64 56 45 65 63 63 47 
			 65–74 38 28 30 43 28 35 
			 75–84 45 43 42 38 41 33 
			 85 and over 35 27 31 22 24 27 
			 Not Known 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			  
			 Total 245 234 249 258 226 197 
		
	
	Note:
	Admissions are defined as the first period of patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. Please note that admissions do not represent the number of patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year. Figures have not yet been adjusted for shortfalls in data (i.e. the data is ungrossed).
	Source:
	Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Department of Health.

Disabled Parking

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance he has issued on the level of minimum provision of disabled parking spaces at NHS hospitals.

John Hutton: National Health Service Estates, an executive agency of the Department of Health, provides advice and guidance to the NHS, principally through a series of documents. These represent best practice guidance, and through their adoption, NHS trusts and health authorities should comply with current legislation affecting disabled people.
	NHS Estates guidance document "Car Parking" (1996—Health Facilities Note 21) suggests overall proportion of car park spaces for disabled people for healthcare premises, whilst accepting that the number and different types of car park spaces would be dependent on the range of healthcare services and facilities provided.
	The Department also issued "Doubly Disabled—Equality for Disabled People in the new NHS—Access to Services" (1999). This guidance gives advice on accessibility for disabled people including 'Transport, cars and parking'. To help underpin this process, an access audit tool was developed and made available to all NHS bodies in 1999.

Angiogram Assessment

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the waiting lists for angiogram assessment in (a) England and (b) Gloucestershire.

John Hutton: holding answer 4 February 2002
	Data are not collected on the number of patients waiting for angiograms. On the 21 November 2001, we announced details of the first wave of £65 million of New Opportunities Fund money which will provide new angiography equipment at 37 hospitals. This was matched by £15 million from the Treasury Capital Modernisation Fund to be used on building laboratory facilities for angiography at 22 hospitals. Further Treasury Capital Modernisation Fund money for buildings will follow to match second and third wave New Opportunities Fund funding. This first wave of funding will enable the National Health Service to carry out an extra 14,000 angiograms each year, and so reduce waiting times.

Walsgrave Hospital

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health why the announcement of the CHI Progress report into the investigation of the Walsgrave Hospital has been postponed.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 5 February 2002
	A Commission for Health Improvement team revisited University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, which includes Walsgrave General Hospital, to assess progress in implementing the trust's action plan, following a clinical governance review last year. The visit took place on 22–23 January 2002, and a report is due to be published in March 2002.

Maternity Units

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many maternity units there are in England and Wales; how many have fewer than (a) 2,500 and (b) 2,000 births a year; how many with approximately 2,000 births a year are midwife only; and what his policy is on the size of midwife only units.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 5 February 2002
	The Department estimates that there are about 250 maternity units in England.
	Information for England about the number of births in each unit and which of these are midwife only is not collected centrally by the relevant Departments.
	Statistics on all births in England and Wales is available on the Office of National Statistics webpage at: www.statistics.gov.uk
	The National Health Service provides care for women in various sizes of midwife only units. It is for local health authorities, trusts and communities to decide on the local pattern of service provision.

Departmental Events

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the (a) conferences, (b) seminars, (c) workshops, (d) exhibitions and (e) press conferences which have been sponsored by his Department and which took place on non-departmental premises in each of the last four years, giving the title, purpose, date and cost of each.

Hazel Blears: The information requested is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportional cost.

National Care Standards Commission

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many full-time equivalent inspector posts there are in the establishment scheme for the National Care Standards Commission for each type of establishment and agency covered by regulations laid down under the Care Standards Act 2000; how many will be in post as at 1 April; and when all posts will be filled.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 6 February 2002
	The National Care Standards Commission is funded to employ 1,475 inspectors. The NCSC will allocate case loads following the completion of the staff transfer from local authorities and health authorities.
	It is currently anticipated that the Commission will need to recruit around 300 additional inspectors to supplement those who transfer. This recruitment is under way and the profile of the take on will match the phased introduction of services new to regulation after 1 April 2002.

National Care Standards Commission

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health to what extent direct observation of service delivery will form part of the routine inspection of establishments by the National Care Standards Commission.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 6 February 2002
	The National Care Standards Commission is still finalising its regulatory procedures which will include inspection methodologies. It is anticipated that the Commission will use a range of techniques as part of their routine inspections and these will include direct observation of service delivery.

Palliative Care

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the underprovision of palliative care; what plans he has to expand the provision, increase expertise and move toward 24 hour care; and if he will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: The National Palliative Care Survey (2000) commissioned by the Department, identified inequality of palliative care provision. The NHS Cancer Plan acknowledged this and that the national health service contribution to the costs of specialist palliative care needed to increase. The Plan announced that by 2004 the NHS will invest an additional £50 million in specialist palliative care in order to address these inequalities. This will match, on a national basis, the investment by the voluntary sector and will enable the NHS to increase their contribution to the costs hospices incur for agreed levels of service. A supportive and palliative care strategy is being developed under the plan to ensure best treatment and care from when cancer is first suspected through to death and bereavement. Part of this strategy includes a review of out-of-hours palliative care services working with other key organisations such as Macmillan Cancer Relief.

NHS Dentists

Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what financial arrangements are in place to help dentists set up NHS practices by way of (a) a grant and (b) a preferential loan.

Hazel Blears: Over the last two financial years we have allocated £10 million from the Dental Care Development Fund and the Dentistry Action Plan Fund to support local plans to improve access. This money enables health authorities to assist dentists seeking to set up new practices and to expand and modernise existing ones.

Probiotics

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research his Department has conducted into the beneficial effects of probiotics; and if he will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: The Department and the Food Standards Agency have not funded any research to date into the beneficial effects of probiotics.

Trolley Waits (Hillingdon Hospital)

John Randall: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people had a trolley wait of four hours or more in Hillingdon hospital in each of the last eight years.

Hazel Blears: The number of patients waiting on a trolley is not collected centrally.

Primary Care (Running Costs)

John Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the running costs are of the primary care groups and the primary care trusts in 200102.

John Hutton: Information for 200102 is not available.
	In 200001 management costs for primary care groups and primary care trusts were 158 million and 24 million respectively.

Residential Care (Elderly)

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the estimated cost is to (a) local authorities and (b) the private sector in Lancashire of bringing residential homes for the elderly up to the standards set by Government.

Jacqui Smith: The cost of complying with the National Minimum Standards for care homes for older people will vary from home to home, depending on the extent to which these homes already meet the standards. The standards are based on existing good practice, and many homes already meet or exceed the standards.

Laser Eye Surgery

David Atkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his Department's assessment is of the (a) effectiveness of laser eye surgery as an alternative to glasses and (b) risks involved; whether he has plans to introduce such treatment on the national health service; and if he will make a statement.

Hazel Blears: Laser surgery is not available under the national health service. Refractive errors can be successfully corrected by spectacles and contact lenses and optical vouchers are available to children and people on low incomes to help with the cost of these appliances. I understand that research shows that surgery is effective in treating selected patients with refractive errors and that research continues into the long-term effects.

Dietary Supplements

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on his policy towards nutritional supplements in food, with particular reference to EU directives under discussion.

Yvette Cooper: A common position on a draft European Union directive on food supplements was agreed by the Council of Ministers on 3 December and is currently at second reading stage in the European Parliament.
	The Government's view is that in the interests of consumer choice, the law should allow food supplements which are safe and properly labelled to be freely marketed. The proposed directive would establish a framework for harmonised controls on vitamin and mineral content of food supplements and introduce a number of useful labelling measures.

Suicide Rates

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether targets exist regarding the national rate of suicide; what these targets are; whether they are being met; and if he will make a statement.

Jacqui Smith: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave the hon. Member for North-East Hertfordshire (Mr. Heald) on 23 October 2001, Official Report, column 147W.

Adoption (Unmarried Couples)

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make it his policy to propose changes in the law to allow adoption by unmarried couples.

Jacqui Smith: We are looking thoroughly at the many and complex issues of partnership registration, rights and responsibilities. Adoption will, alongside all other relevant issues, be considered as part of that work.

Beta Interferon and Glatiramer Acetate

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  who will make the initial decision on which MS patients are included in the new cohort to receive beta interferon and glatiramer acetate drugs;
	(2)  if he will estimate how many new people in (a) England and (b) Essex will receive beta interferon and glatiramer acetate drugs in the next five years;
	(3)  what system for appeals will be established to review cases where MS sufferers have been refused access to beta interferon and glatiramer acetate; who will constitute the appeal body; and what its terms of reference, operating procedures and decision criteria will be;
	(4)  what limits will be put on the access of clinically qualifying patients to beta interferon and glatiramer acetate drugs;
	(5)  when the new cohort of MS sufferers who will now receive beta interferon and glatiramer acetate drugs will start to receive these drugs;
	(6)  what restriction based on post code there will be to access the beta interferon and glatiramer acetate drugs for clinically qualifying patients;
	(7)  how the new cohort of MS patients to receive beta interferon and glatiramer acetate drugs will be selected;
	(8)  whether patients who are diagnosed as having MS and who qualify under the clinical criteria for the cohort to receive beta interferon and glatiramer acetate drugs will be given access to those drugs.

Hazel Blears: The scheme allows disease-modifying drugs for multiple sclerosis to be prescribed on the national health service to patients who meet the criteria set out by the Association of British Neurologists (ABN). Subject to assessment by a specialist neurologist to confirm that they meet these criteria, all eligible patients will be given access to beta interferon and glatiramer acetate. It has been estimated that the total number of patients in England and Wales who fall within the ABN criteria might range between 7,500 to 9,000. We have no figures for potential patient numbers in Essex.
	NHS bodies are required to fund any treatment within the scheme prescribed by clinicians for eligible patients, in accordance with a statutory direction.
	The responsibility for making an effective clinical judgment rests with the specialist neurologist concerned. If there is any doubt about an individual case, it is likely that another specialist neurologist will be requested to give a second opinion.
	The scheme starts to operate on 6 May 2002. It is anticipated that it might take 18 months to initiate all eligible patients on the scheme. Details of the scheme are explained in Health Service Circular 2002/004 which has been widely distributed across the NHS.

Young Minds

Virginia Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to secure state funding for Young Minds following the letter to the right hon. Member for South-West Surrey from the Minister of State, the Cabinet Office.

Jacqui Smith: The Department has given financial aid to Young Minds for a number of years via the Section 64 grant scheme. In the current financial year we shall be giving Young Minds a mixture of project and core funding that totals 74,000. We are currently considering an application for the renewal of their core funding for the years 200203 to 200405.
	We have a close working relationship with Young Minds and welcome their collaboration in the development of the child and adolescent mental health module of the children's National Service Framework.

Speech Therapy

Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the likely (a) number of and (b) requirement for speech and language therapists in the NHS in each of the next five years;
	(2)  what plans he has to increase the number of university training places in speech and language therapy.

John Hutton: The NHS Plan commits us to 4,450 more therapists and other professional staff being trained each year by 2004 than there were in 1999.
	Between 19992000 and 200001 the number of speech and language therapy training commissions increased by 101. We are working with workforce development confederations to determine the split in the remainder of commissions that make up the NHS Plan target. Recommendations on the final allocation will be made by the Workforce Numbers Advisory Board (WNAB) later in the year and will take into account supply and demand information for speech and language therapy. WNAB will also look at the need for further training commissions beyond 2004.

Epilepsy

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the incidence of epilepsy and the death rate for epilepsy was (a) in total, (b) for men and (c) for women in each health authority in England in (i) 1996 and (ii) the most recent available year; and how these rates deviate from the national average.

Jacqui Smith: The Department does not collect information specifically on the incidence of epilepsy. However, it does collect information on the number of admissions to national health service hospitals for epilepsy by health authority. The available information has been placed in the Library.
	The number of epilepsy deaths at health authority level is very small and subject to considerable random fluctuation. In both 1996 and 2000 the mean number of epilepsy deaths for health authorities was eight. These figures, therefore, cannot in themselves be taken as evidence of either trends over time, or real differences between areas.
	The rates are presented as standardised mortality ratios (SMRs). The ratios are the numbers of observed deaths in each health authority to the numbers of expected deaths. These expected deaths are the number, which would have occurred if the sex and age-specific mortality rates for England were applied in each health authority. While SMRs allow for comparison between areas because the ratios presented here are based on very small numbers, even slight differences in numbers will have a marked effect on the resulting SMRs.

Mortality Rates

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list every ward in Tyne and Wear by local authority, setting out the latest standard mortality ratio on the basis of the European Standardised rate (a) in total, (b) for men and (c) for women and the year in which the death rate for England and Wales as a whole was at this level.

Jacqui Smith: Information is not available in the format requested. The table compares the trends in mortality from all causes for men and women in England and Wales with each local authority in Tyne and Wear from 1989 to 1999.
	
		Trends in mortality from all causes (ICD9 001999): Indirectly Standardised Ratios (SMR), 1989 to 1999 annually, all ages(91)
		
			   1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 
		
		
			 Males
			 England and Wales
			 SMR 106 103 102 98 100 95 95 93 90 89 87 
			 OBS 280,097 276,104 276,399 270,580 278,245 265,843 271,761 268,888 265,190 263,314 262,248 
			 Gateshead
			 SMR 136 121 126 119 123 113 113 108 102 111 99 
			 OBS 1387 1244 1318 1243 1306 1209 1222 1187 1130 1234 1114 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne
			 SMR 121 121 121 117 117 111 107 105 103 104 102 
			 OBS 1,738 1,732 1,735 1,691 1,697 1,616 1,556 1,531 1,502 1,519 1,487 
			 North Tyneside
			 SMR 118 121 117 112 111 105 102 108 98 103 94 
			 OBS 1,199 1,256 1,224 1,184 1,192 1,133 1,121 1,202 1,104 1,172 1,070 
			 South Tyneside
			 SMR 136 118 120 126 117 110 105 107 111 107 106 
			 OBS 1091 960 984 1,043 974 925 906 936 981 952 949 
			 Sunderland
			 SMR 131 122 127 122 119 114 112 110 106 110 102 
			 OBS 1,732 1,641 1,737 1,685 1,653 1,614 1,596 1,593 1,551 1,641 1,527 
			 
			 Females
			 England and Wales
			 SMR 104 100 100 97 100 95 96 96 95 93 94 
			 OBS 294,841 286,775 291,709 285,868 298,487 284,278 292,582 292,564 291,294 288,680 289,800 
			 Gateshead
			 SMR 122 112 119 107 121 114 112 112 115 118 110 
			 OBS 1,380 1,274 1,368 1,237 1,402 1,313 1,302 1,299 1,316 1,331 1,234 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne
			 SMR 118 112 108 110 107 106 107 109 106 112 103 
			 OBS 1,997 1,878 1,824 1,858 1,805 1,775 1,783 1,812 1,728 1,789 1,627 
			 North Tyneside
			 SMR 117 113 115 109 113 99 99 99 100 98 92 
			 OBS 1,335 1,316 1,355 1,303 1,368 1,217 1,231 1,250 1,289 1,277 1,200 
			 South Tyneside
			 SMR 125 116 114 112 111 104 104 100 109 105 101 
			 OBS 1,102 1,028 1,028 1,012 1,019 967 975 947 1043 10,04 960 
			 Sunderland
			 SMR 122 118 118 115 121 113 110 111 103 112 114 
			 OBS 1,743 1,714 1,738 1,708 1,809 1,701 1,678 1,702 1,580 1,727 1,755 
			 
			 Persons
			 England and Wales
			 SMR 105 101 101 98 100 95 96 94 93 91 91 
			 OBS 574,938 562,879 568,108 556,448 576,732 550,121 564,343 561,452 556,484 551,994 552,048 
			 Gateshead
			 SMR 129 116 123 113 122 114 113 110 108 114 104 
			 OBS 2,767 2,518 2,686 2,480 2,708 2,522 2,524 2,486 2,446 2,565 2,348 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne
			 SMR 120 116 114 113 112 109 107 107 104 108 102 
			 OBS 3,735 3,610 3,559 3,549 3,502 3,391 3,339 3,343 3,230 3,308 3,114 
			 North Tyneside
			 SMR 117 117 116 110 112 102 100 103 99 100 93 
			 OBS 2,534 2,572 2,579 2,487 2,560 2,350 2,352 2,452 2,393 2,449 2,270 
			 South Tyneside
			 SMR 130 117 117 118 114 107 104 103 110 106 103 
			 OBS 2,193 1,988 2,012 2,055 1,993 1,892 1,881 1,883 2,024 1,956 1,909 
			 Sunderland
			 SMR 126 120 122 118 120 114 111 110 104 111 108 
			 OBS 3475 3355 3475 3393 3462 3315 3274 3295 3131 3368 3282 
		
	
	(91) Standard rates are age-specific mortality rates in 1993
	Notes:
	SMTStandardised Mortality Rates
	OBSObserved Deaths

Mental Health Services

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of children's mental health services in England.

Jacqui Smith: The main objective of our strategy for child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS), which is supported by 85 million of targeted funding 1999 to 2002, is to reduce waiting lists and geographical inequalities of access and to bring fragmented and variable local services up to an appropriate level. Considerable progress has been made including robust strategies for the development of local CAMHS, based on needs assessment, agreed between all health and local authorities; and significant increases in service provision (some 375 extra wte posts in 2000 and 46 new in-patient beds by 31 March 2002). Other developments are much improved co-operation and joint working between the main providing agencies and better links between CAMHS and related initiatives such as Sure Start, Quality Protects, Children's Services planning and Youth Offending Teams. However local services generally are not yet up to the required standard to meet current pressures. The inclusion of a CAMHS module in the forthcoming Children's National Service Framework will provide an opportunity to establish new standards and service models. It will also give guidance on good practice, drawing in part on a range of innovative projects in community settings which we are currently funding.

Mental Health Services

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he last met ministers in the Cabinet Office to discuss the work of the Social Exclusion Unit and the relationship between poor mental health and social exclusion; and if he will make a statement.

Jacqui Smith: The relationship between poor mental health and social exclusion has been considered within a number of contexts, most recently in relation to the Social Exclusion Unit's project on reducing re-offending among ex-prisoners. My hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under- Secretary for Health last met ministerial colleagues, including a Cabinet Office Minister, with regard to this work on 16 January 2002.
	Ministerial consideration of the overarching social exclusion agenda is facilitated through the Domestic Affairs (Social Exclusion and Regeneration) cabinet sub-committee at which I represent my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State, and which is chaired by my hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister. DA (SER) last met on 18 December 2001.
	We have a full programme for tackling the social exclusion of those with mental health problems. The National Service Framework for Mental Health (NSF) is a 10-year programme spelling out national standards for mental health, what they aim to achieve, how they should be developed and delivered and how to measure performance.

Mental Health Services

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the achievements of the Children's Czar have been in the field of children's mental health.

Jacqui Smith: Since his appointment on 18 July 2001, the National Clinical Director for Children, Professor Al Aynsley-Green, has been leading the work of the Children's Taskforce and development of the Children's National Service Framework (NSF). The NSF will include standards relating to the mental health and psychological well-being of children and young people, and Professor Aynsley-Green has established an external working group to provide advice on this area.
	Engagement with, and listening to, stakeholders is a key part of the National Director's role. In the area of child and adolescent mental health, the National Director has held a number of wide-ranging discussions on the current issues, including discussions with the President of the Royal College of Psychiatrists and Faculty of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, informal meetings with voluntary organisations, including Young Minds, visiting several young people's psychiatric units around the country and addressing several major conferences including FOCUSa national meeting of child psychiatrists.

Mental Health Services

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what role the National Institute for Mental Health for England will have in the field of children's mental health.

Jacqui Smith: The National Institute for Mental Health in England will cover the full range of mental health services from childhood to old age. It will be concerned with mental health care in primary, specialist and tertiary care organisations, in both health and social care. It will address the issues surrounding children and other groups with special needs.
	It will also ensure that the implementation of the mental health component of the Children's National Service Framework is integrated with the mental health agenda.

Mental Health Services

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the timetable is for the National Institute for Mental Health to (a) be developed and (b) start work.

Jacqui Smith: The National Institute for Mental Health in England was launched in July 2001 and the first wave of work was announced on 10 October, World Mental Health Day. A small project team has been working to develop the role and function of the institute and a full consultation has recently concluded. The team are now looking to put formal structures in place and key appointments will be made over the coming months.

Care Group Workforce Teams

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what the work is of the care group workforce teams;
	(2)  what the budget is of each care group workforce team;
	(3)  when the Care Group Workforce Team on Mental Health was established; and what is its remit;
	(4)  what powers the Care Group Workforce Team on Mental Health has;

Jacqui Smith: The care group workforce teams are multi-disciplinary bodies set up to support the National Workforce Development Board (NWDB) and the relevant service taskforce. They lead on national strategies for producing the right workforce to deliver NHS Plan commitments for service improvements, across health, social care and the independent and voluntary sectors, within their remit.
	Seven CGWTs were established on 19 November 2001. They cover services for children (including maternity and gynaecology), older people, cancer, coronary heart disease, mental health, long-term conditions (including diabetes and renal), and emergency care (including accident and emergency, ambulance services, and critical care).
	The CGWTs do not hold dedicated budgets but influence the way mainstream national health service budgets are spent.
	The terms of reference and first year priorities for each care group are currently being finalised and will be placed in the Library shortly.

Care Group Workforce Teams

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how the success of the care group work force teams on mental health will be evaluated.

Jacqui Smith: The overall success of the care group work force teams will be measured by the provision of a work force that better matches service needs. The mental health care group work force team will develop specific mechanisms as part of its first year work programme.

GP Consultations

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average time which a general practitioner spends with a patient has been in the last 12 months for which figures are available.

John Hutton: The most recent statistics on general practitioner consultation times are drawn from the GP work load survey of 199293 which records that the average GP consultation time with a patient was 8.4 minutes.

Children and Young People

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he (a) has taken and (b) will take to implement Core Principles for the Involvement of Children and Young People; and what progress has been made in drawing up an action plan.

Jacqui Smith: The Department is playing a leading role in engaging children and young people in the development of policy. Development of the Department's action plan is well advanced. Participation of children and young people underpins both the Quality Protects programme and implementation of the NHS Plan.
	The Department was one of the first Government Departments to create a young people's reference group. This group is serving as a model of good practice for other Government Departments and local councils.

GP Targets

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether all general practitioners are expected to meet his 48 hours' access target by 2004.

John Hutton: All patients on every general practitioners' list will have access to a GP within 48 hours by 2004. This does not need to be a named GP. Health authorities and primary care trusts have been working with GPs and others to secure delivery of these targets. In doing so they are supported by the work of the National Primary Care Development Team and by resources from the PCT primary care access fund.

Prison Nurses

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he last met Ministers in the Home Office to discuss the training of prison nurses to carry out mental health assessments; and if he will make a statement.

Jacqui Smith: I am in regular contact with the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Community and Custodial Sentences at the Home Office (Beverley Hughes) over a wide range of prison matters, among them issues related to the training of nurses and other health care staff working in prisons.

Lister Hospital, Stevenage

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the facilities and development funding available for the Lister hospital, Stevenage.

Jacqui Smith: The assessment of facilities and future development of the Lister hospital is linked to the Hertfordshire and south Bedfordshire acute services review. Work continues on service models and this will be published as an interim discussion document later this year.

Statins

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what he is doing to increase the uptake of statins.

Yvette Cooper: The National Service Framework for Coronary Heart Disease sets out advice on the prescribing of statins, by primary care, to prevent heart disease. Primary care practices are developing registers of patients with coronary heart disease to help them provide these patients with systematic care. Part of this systematic care is the effective prescribing of statins to lower cholesterol levels. The prescribing of statins has increased by over 30 per cent. in the first year since the publication of the National Service Framework in June 2000 and is continuing to rise.

Surgical Instruments

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which hospitals have been found to have fallen below acceptable standards for the decontamination of surgical instruments since October 2000.

Yvette Cooper: Over the last year the Department has completed the first ever national survey of decontamination services for surgical instruments in the national health service in England. The survey, implemented between March 2001 and November 2001, involved a series of prioritised visits to all NHS facilities undertaking reprocessing. Initial assessments found that standards in 109 hospitals fell below acceptable levels. Further assessments and work with hospitals to implement action plans for improvement has resulted in all NHS acute hospitals in England having access to satisfactory decontamination services. The results of the assessments are published in the report A Review of the Decontamination of Surgical Instruments in the NHS in England. Copies of this report, and further comprehensive guidance are available in the Library and can also be found on the website www.decontamination.nhsestates.gov.uk. The modernisation of NHS decontamination services is a long-term process, not a one off event, and we are committed to ensuring that standards are maintained and raised to ensure patient safety.

Rubella Vaccination

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health for what reason the rubella vaccination is administered to boys.

Yvette Cooper: Prior to the introduction of MMR in 1988, a large number of babies were born disabled as a result of congenital rubella. In many cases this was due to older unimmunised children passing rubella to their pregnant mother or her pregnant friends. With MMR a child and its family can benefit from protection against three diseases at the earliest possible time.

Organ Donation

Richard Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to ensure that NHS staff who may be in charge of a hospital ward are fully aware of procedures for arranging for donation of organs for transplantation.

Jacqui Smith: The consultation document Organ and Tissue Donation published in February 2001 announced planned improvements in transplants services with the overall aim to increase organ donation levels in the United Kingdom by meeting challenging targets by 2005. UK Transplant is supporting a number of initiatives across the United Kingdom to increase the numbers of organs available for transplantation with dedicated funding supporting staffing costs in hospitals, the co-ordination of this transplant expansion programme, training, education and communications. Ten additional co-ordinators across the UK are being appointed. Donor transplant co-ordinators have a particular responsibility to raise the importance and profile of organ/tissue donation in all hospitals and will carry out various education initiatives. Specific funding is also being made available to employ donor liaison sisters/staff nurses in 35 hospitals with intensive care units. They will be responsible for identifying potential donors and ensuring that all staff in that hospital understand the importance of organ and tissue donation and how it can be arranged.

Organ Donors

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in the UK are registered as organ donors; what plans he has to introduce legislation to recognise presumed consent; what measures he has introduced to encourage people to sign up as organ donors; and if he will make a statement.

Jacqui Smith: There are currently 9.1 million people registered on the national health service organ donor register.
	We have no plans to introduce an opt-out scheme for organ donation. We are in the process of undertaking a comprehensive review of the law governing the taking, removal and use of human tissue, and will be issuing a consultation paper shortly.
	There have been numerous wide-ranging initiatives in England to raise the public's awareness of the shortage of organs for transplantation. The Department runs a public information campaign with a current annual budget of 900,000. A public information leaflet, incorporating the organ donor card, is widely distributed, and is also available through the organ donor literature line. The Department also runs a special campaign to raise awareness among the Asian community and a similar campaign targeting the African and African Caribbean communities is planned for launch in spring 2002.

Asbestos

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations his Department has received regarding the EU prohibition on white asbestos.

Alan Whitehead: I have been asked to reply.
	There have been no formal representations received about the European Commission Directive 1999/77/EC, which requires the marketing, supply and use of white asbestos to be banned by 1 January 2005. However 153 representations were made on the consultation on the Asbestos Prohibitions (Amendment) Regulations 1999, which implemented the EC ban on white asbestos in the UK. Eight specific derogations were made in the regulations. Twenty-two requests for exemptions from the regulations have been received since they were made, of which thirteen were granted. All derogations and exemptions were granted because no suitable substitute to white asbestos existed.

Medical Students

David Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of trends in recruitment of medical students by socio-economic group since 1997.

Margaret Hodge: I have been asked to reply.
	The numbers and proportions of students accepted for entry to Pre-clinical medical courses by social class are shown in the following table. The data on social class are based on self-reporting by applicants, so small year-on- year changes should not be regarded as significant.
	The Government are committed to raising the participation rates for people from less affluent family backgrounds, and has introduced Excellence Challenge, including the AimHigher campaign, which is targeted at raising attainment and aspirations among young people who traditionally would not consider going to university.
	Accepted applicants through UCAS to full-time and sandwich undergraduate Pre-clinical medical courses in the UK, by social class.
	
		Accepted applicants through UCAS to full-time and sandwich undergraduate Pre-clinical medical courses in the UK, by social class
		
			  1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 
		
		
			 Numbers  
			 I Professional 1,818 1,876 1,875 1,970 2,053 
			 II Intermediate 1,698 1,743 1,756 1,843 2,037 
			 IIIN Skilled non-manual 348 353 399 423 439 
			 IIIM Skilled manual 294 325 336 363 406 
			 IV Partly skilled 187 170 182 200 204 
			 V Unskilled 36 25 19 44 36 
			 Not known 196 191 304 386 500 
			 Grand total 4,577 4,683 4,871 5,229 5,675 
			   
			 Percentages  
			 I Professional 41 42 41 41 40 
			 II Intermediate 39 39 38 38 39 
			 IIIN Skilled non-manual 8 8 9 9 8 
			 IIIM Skilled manual 7 7 7 7 8 
			 IV Partly skilled 4 4 4 4 4 
			 V Unskilled 1 1 0 1 1 
			 Grand total 100 100 100 100 100 
		
	
	Source:
	Universities and Colleges Admissions Service.

Health and Social Care Bill

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health for what reasons consultation on the Health and Social Care Bill was restricted to six weeks.

John Hutton: As is standard practice with most legislation not subject to pre-legislative scrutiny, there was no formal consultation on the Health and Social Care Bill. However a discussion document on the patient and public involvement proposals within the National Health Service Reform and Healthcare Professions Bill currently before Parliament was published with an invitation to comment which was open for six weeks. It was not a formal consultation exercise and six weeks was considered an adequate period during which to receive comments in keeping with the timetable for the Bill as a whole.

Haemophilia

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the number of persons who have contracted viral infections in the last 12 months which could have been avoided if they had been prescribed recombinant factor VIII;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the number of persons who have avoided viral infections as a result of the prescription of recombinant factor VIII;

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 22 November 2001
	We are not aware of any viral transmissions from the use of plasma-derived clotting factors for haemophiliacs in the United Kingdom in the last 12 months.
	Heat treatment was introduced for UK-plasma products in the mid 1980s, and they have since had an excellent safety record. In addition, throughout this period, there have been increasingly sophisticated screening tests on the plasma, to improve the safety margin.

Haemophilia

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the (a) availability and (b) level of supply from manufacturers of recombinant factor VIII;
	(2)  what plans he has to permit the provision of recombinant factor VIII to persons over the age of 16 years in England free of charge.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 22 November 2002
	Patients with haemophilia up to age 20 (approximately 43 per cent. of all haemophilia patients) are eligible to receive recombinant clotting factors. There are no plans to allow haemophiliacs over age 16 to be exempt from prescription charges
	These patients may not currently be receiving recombinant clotting factors due to the recent worldwide shortage. However, supplies are returning to normal and patients up to age 20 will receive recombinant clotting factors as soon as possible. We are giving active consideration to the case for providing recombinant clotting factors for all haemophilia patients in England.

Hyperbaric Disorders

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on treatment of hyperbaric disorders.

Yvette Cooper: Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBO) is a medical treatment by which oxygen is administered at greater than normal pressure to a patient in order to treat specific medical indications. Arrangements for the provision of HBO are made by NHS trusts locally.

Trolley Waits

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what changes have been made to the (a) designations of trolleys and (b) methods of counting trolley waits since May 1997.

Hazel Blears: The Department collects information on all waits for emergency admission to a bed via accident and emergency department (AE) following a decision to admit. This information is collected as part of Your Guide to the NHS (formerly Patients Charter). It has been collected since 1997 and is published quarterly.
	The Department does not collect information on whether patients, recorded as waiting for admission, are on trolleys.
	Since August 2001, data on total time in AE from arrival to admission, transfer or discharge have been collected by the Department. This is in line with the NHS Plan which states that by 2004, the maximum wait in AE from arrival to admission, transfer or discharge will be four hours.

Medical Costs (European Economic Area)

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish the detailed expenditure costs of EEA medical costs (a) in total and (b) broken down by country of origin of the patient.

Yvette Cooper: The information requested is as follows
	
		Estimated costs of EEA medical benefits for 200001 -- 000
		
			 EEA country  UK payments to EEA states EEA states payments to the UK 
		
		
			 Austria 1,711 618 
			 Belgium 1,084 1,021 
			 Denmark (92) (92) 
			 Finland 0 0 
			 France 25,914 2,282 
			 Germany 474 111 
			 Greece 863 658 
			 Iceland 15 14 
			 Ireland 141,475 14,258 
			 Italy 5,837 5,535 
			 Liechtenstein 0 0 
			 Luxembourg (92) (92) 
			 Netherlands 2,757 1,285 
			 Norway 0 0 
			 Portugal 541 110 
			 Spain 31,012 750 
			 Sweden 511 819 
			  
			 Total 212,194 27,461 
		
	
	(92) Waiver. The UK has cost waiver agreements with Finland and Norway, except for referred patients. No claims were made in this financial year.
	Notes:
	1. Figures are based on latest available information and used for resource accounting and budgeting (RAB) purposes in 200001.
	2. Claims against the UK are made in national currency and converted into sterling by using the quarterly mean exchange rates published by the EU commission.
	3. Figures are rounded to the nearest thousand.

Beta Interferon

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on what dates his Department held (a) negotiations and (b) discussions with pharmaceutical companies in relation to the trial prescribing of beta interferon; and which pharmaceutical companies were involved.

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on his discussions with the pharmaceutical industry over the provision of beta interferon.

Hazel Blears: I refer the hon. Members to the reply I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Stroud (Mr. Drew) on 8 February 2002, Official Report, column 1241W.

Accident and Emergency Services

David Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many accident and emergency cases were dealt with by (a) the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and (b) the Princess Royal Hospital Telford in 200001.

Yvette Cooper: The information requested is shown in the table.
	
		Total Accident and Emergency Attendances at Selected NHS Trusts 200001
		
			 NHS trust Total attendance 
		
		
			 Princess Royal hospital 43,037 
			 Royal Shrewsbury hospital 41,735 
		
	
	Source: KH09Outpatient and ward attenders

Accident and Emergency Services

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the expected cost to public funds is of ending long waits in accident and emergency departments.

Hazel Blears: We have made no estimate of the cost of long waiting times in accident and emergency departments. Currently 77 per cent. of visitors to accident and emergency are admitted, transferred or discharged within four hours.

Cloned Embryos

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to appeal against the judgment in the case of R v. Quintavalle and the Secretary of State for Health.

Yvette Cooper: We did appeal and on 18 January 2002, the Court of Appeal unanimously overturned the original judgment. This means that the creation and use of embryos created by cell nuclear replacement (so called cloned embryos) is governed by the 1990 Act and regulated by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority.

Latex Allergy

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent studies he has undertaken into the (a) cause, (b) prevalence and (c) treatment and management of latex allergy (i) among national health service workers and (ii) in the wider population.

John Hutton: holding answer 18 December 2001
	The Medical Devices Agency regularly investigates the risks posed to patients and healthcare workers and along with the Department of Health, issues relevant guidance. Latex is recognised as a sensitiser or substance hazardous to health as defined by the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations (COSHH 1994) and Health Service Circular 1999/186 instructed that individuals who are sensitised to latex should stop using latex medical gloves and be provided with gloves made from an alternative material.

Cataracts

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will list the waiting times for cataract operations in each of the last 10 years for each NHS trust from (a) referral from GP to first consultation and (b) referral from GP to surgery; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how many patients diagnosed as suffering from cataracts in each of the last 10 years in each NHS trust (a) have undergone and (b) are awaiting surgery.

Hazel Blears: Data are not collected on waiting times from GP referral to a first outpatient appointment specifically for cataract patients, and data are not collected on the total wait from GP referral to a first outpatient appointment through to completion of surgery.
	Instead, data have been provided from 199192 to 200001 on the length of time patients waited on the inpatient waiting list before being treated for cataract removal.
	This Government are aware that some patients wait long periods of time for cataract removal. Cataract removal is one of the most commonly performed operations, particularly among the elderly. That is why we have set up the Action On Cataracts programme, led by the NHS Modernisation Agency. The programme aims to improve access to care and to reduce variations in waiting times for cataract removal patients. As part of the programme, local services are helped to identify their constraints and to find effective solutions.
	Good practice guidance on treating cataract patients was issued to NHS Trusts, Health Authorities and Primary Care Groups in February 2000. In 200001 the sum of 22 million was allocated for Action on Cataracts to provide dedicated facilities to improve the patient pathway and to reduce waiting times.

Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition

Martyn Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which members of the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition have participated in previous investigations into dietary salt and health conducted by (a) the Cardiovascular Review Group of the Committee on Medical Aspects and (b) other Government bodies since 1990.

Yvette Cooper: The table shows which SACN members were also members of the Committee of Medical Aspects of Food and Nutrition Policy (COMA, 1994), the COMA Cardiovascular Review Group (1994), the COMA panel on Dietary Reference Values (1991), and associated Working Group on minerals.
	No SACN members were on the MAFF Consumer Panel (January 1999) which considered salt and health. The table also shows that no SACN members were participants of the 1997 workshop on salt organised at the request of the Department of Health by the Faculty of Public Health Medicine and the British Heart Foundation.
	Biographies of SACN members can be obtained from: www.sacn.gov.uk.
	
		
			 SACN Member  Member of SACN sub-group on salt Member of COMA (1994) Member of COMA Cardiovascular Review Group (1994) Member of COMA Panel on DRVs (1991) Member of COMA Panel on DRV Working Group on Minerals (1991) Participant at FPHM/BHF Workshop (1997) Member MAFF Consumer Panel (1999) 
		
		
			 Professor Alan Jackson (Chair) Yes Yes  
			 Professor Peter Aggett Yes Yes  Yes Yes (Chair)   
			 Professor Annie Anderson
			 Professor Sheila Bingham Yes Yes  
			 Professor John Cummings
			 Miss Gill Fine Yes   
			 Ms Paulette Jones
			 Dr. Timothy Key
			 Professor Peter Kopelman
			 Dr. Ann Prentice
			 Professor Andrew Rugg-Gunn
			 Dr. Anita Thomas
			 Mrs. Stella Walsh
			 Dr. Anthony Williams
			 Professor Christine Williams

Patient Advocacy and Liaison Services

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many Patient Advocacy and Liaison Services are in operation; and where they are.

Hazel Blears: Current patient advice and liaison services, as at November 2001, are as follows:
	Addenbrooke's NHS Trust
	Ashford and St. Peter's NHS Trust
	Ashford PCG
	Barts and the London NHS Trust
	Bassetlaw Hospital
	Bath and NE Somerset PCT
	Berkshire Healthcare NHS Trust
	Bexhill and Rother PCT
	Birmingham Specialist Community Trust
	Birmingham Women's Healthcare Trust
	Bishop Auckland General Hospital
	Blackburn, Hyndburn and Ribble Valley NHS Trust
	Bolton Hospitals NHS Trust
	Bootle and Litherland PCT
	Bournemouth PCT, Poole Bay PCT, Poole Central and North PCT and Dorset Ambulance Trust
	Brighton and Hove PCG
	Brighton Healthcare NHS Trust
	Buckinghamshire Mental Health Trust
	City Hospital Trust
	City Hospitals Sunderland NHS Trust
	Clatterbridge Centre for Oncology NHS Trust
	County Durham and Darlington Priority Services NHS Trust
	Craven PCG
	Crawley PCG
	Dartford, Gravesham and Swanley PCT
	Dartford, Gravesham NHS Trust
	Dewsbury Healthcare NHS Trust
	Doncaster and Bassetlaw Hospitals NHS Trust
	Easington PCG
	East Cheshire NHS Trust
	East Devon PCT
	East Gloucestershire Trust
	East Kent Hospitals Trust
	Eastbourne and County Healthcare NHS Trust
	Eastbourne Hospital NHS Trust
	Eastern Wakefield PCT
	Epping Forest PCT
	Exeter PCT
	Fenland PCT
	Frimley Park NHS Trust
	Gateshead Health NHS Trust Education Centre
	George Eliot Hospital and Warwickshire Ambulance Trust
	Gloucestershire Royal NHS Trust
	Greenwich Healthcare NHS Trust
	Guy's and St. Thomas' Hospital NHS Trust
	Hambleton and Richmondshire PCG
	Harrogate Health Care NHS Trust
	Hartlepool NHS PCT
	Hastings and Rother NHS Trust
	Heatherwood and Wrexham Park NHS Trust
	Herefordshire PCT
	High Weald PCG
	Hillingdon PCT
	Homerton Hospital NHS Trust
	Hull and East Yorkshire Community Health NHS Trust
	Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust
	Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust
	Kettering General Hospital NHS Trust
	King's Healthcare NHS Trust
	Kingston Hospital NHS Trust
	Langbaurgh PCT
	Luton and Dunstable Hospital
	Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells
	Manchester Mental Health Partnership
	Mayday Healthcare NHS Trust
	Medway and Swale PCG
	Medway Maritime Hospital
	Mid Surrey; East Elmbridge and East Surrey PCGs
	Mid Sussex NHS Trust
	Middlesbrough and Eston NHS PCG
	Milton Keynes Central Hospital
	Newham PCT
	North Bristol Trust
	North Cheshire Hospitals NHS Trust
	North Durham Healthcare NHS Trust
	North East Lincolnshire PCT
	North East London Mental Health NHS Trust
	North Hampshire Hospital NHS Trust
	North Hants PCT
	North Middlesex Hospital NHS Trust
	North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Trust
	North Tees NHS PCT
	Northallerton Trust
	Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust
	Northern and Yorks Region Learning Alliance
	Northern General Hospital
	Northumberland Mental Health Trust
	Nottinghamshire Health Authority
	Nuffield Orthopaedic NHS Trust
	Ouse Valley PCG
	Oxford Learning Disabilities Trust
	Oxford Radcliffe Hospital NHS Trust
	Oxleas NHS Trust
	Peterborough Hospitals NHS Trust
	Pinderfields and Pontefract Hospitals NHS Trust
	Plymouth PCT
	Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust
	Preston Acute Hospital NHS Trust
	Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust
	Priority Healthcare Wearside NHS Trust
	Queen Victoria Hospital NHS Trust
	Royal Berkshire and Battle Hospital NHS Trust
	Royal Cornwall Hospitals Trust
	Royal Devon and Exeter Trust
	Royal Hallamshire Hospital
	Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospital NHS Trust
	Royal Liverpool Children's Hospital NHS Trust
	Royal Surrey County NHS trust
	Royal United Hospital Bath
	Rushmoor and Hart PCG
	Salisbury Healthcare Trust
	Scarborough and NE Yorkshire Healthcare NHS Trust
	Scarborough, Whitby and Ryedale PCG
	Selby and District A.V.S
	Sheffield Health Authority
	Sheffield Teaching Hospitals
	Shropshire Hospitals
	Slough PCT
	Somerset Health Community PALS
	South Buckinghamshire Trust
	South Derbyshire Acute NHS Trust
	South Devon Healthcare trust
	South Downs Health NHS Trust
	South Humber Health Authority
	South London and Maudsley Mental Health NHS Trust
	South Manchester University Hospital Trust
	South Stoke PCT
	South Tees Acute Hospitals NHS Trust
	South Tyneside Health Care Trust
	South Wiltshire PCT
	Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust
	Southern Derbyshire Community and Mental Health Trust
	St. Catherine's Hospital
	St George's Healthcare NHS Trust
	St. Helens and Knowsley NHS Trust
	St. Mary's House
	St. Richards Hospital, Chichester
	Stepping Hill Hospital
	Stockport NHS Trust
	Sunderland West NHS PCT
	Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust
	Surrey Hants Borders Mental Health
	Surrey Oaklands NHS Trust
	Sussex Ambulance Service NHS Trust
	Swindon and Marlborough Trust
	Tees and NE Yorks NHS Trust
	Tees, East and North Yorkshire Ambulance Service
	Teeside and North Yorkshire Ambulance Service
	Thames Gateway NHS Trust
	The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Trust
	The Walton Centre
	Tower Hamlets PCT
	Trafford Healthcare NHS Trust
	United Bristol Hospitals Trust
	University College London Hospitals NHS Trust
	University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust
	Vale of Aylesbury PCT
	Wakefield and Pontefract Community Healthcare NHS Trust
	Wakefield West PCT
	Walsall Hospitals Trust
	West Hertfordshire NHS Trust
	West Kent Mental Health Trust
	West Norfolk PCT
	West Suffolk Hospitals NHS Trust
	West Sussex Partnership Trust
	West Yorkshire Metropolitan Ambulance Service NHS Trust
	Whittington Hospitals NHS Trust
	Winchester and Eastleigh Healthcare NHS Trust
	Worthing and Southlands Hospitals NHS
	Wythenshawe Health Centre
	York Health Services NHS Trust.

Hospital-acquired Infections

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many hospital-acquired infections there were in each of the past five years.

Jacqui Smith: The data requested are not held centrally. Healthcare associated infections in general, and Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) specifically, are a recognised problem in most parts of the world. It is generally accepted that, at any one time in England, as many as 9 per cent. of in-patients have an infection acquired since their admission to hospital. Information about bacteraemias (blood borne infections) due to MRSA has been collected from all acute trusts as the first stage of a new comprehensive and compulsory surveillance system since 1 April 2001. Early data from this surveillance were published in the Public Health Laboratory Service Communicable Disease Report on 8 February. (www.phls.co.uk/publications/CDR per cent.20Weekly/ pages/news.html#MRSA)

Patients (Nutritional Status)

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which hospitals do not screen as routine the nutritional status of patients being admitted to hospital.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 3 January 2002
	The Department does not collect these data. The standard on general hospital care in the National Service Framework for Older People, published in March 2001, sets the need for nutritional screening to identify those at nutritional risk within the wider context of the good care management of older people in hospital. Food and nutrition is also one of the best practice standards in The Essence of Care: patient-focused benchmarking for health care practitioners which was published in February 2001 and will be used to support health professionals. In addition, the single assessment process for older people will require health professionals to collect information on nutritional status at the initial stage. Detailed guidance on the single assessment process was published on 28 January 2002.

Children Act 1989

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps have been taken to review the Regulations and Guidance associated with the Children Act 1989 following the Utting report.

Jacqui Smith: In our response to the Children's Safeguards Review (the Utting report), we acknowledged that in the longer term it may be necessary to completely revise and reissue the regulations and guidance to the Children Act 1989. The intention is to undertake this on a step by step basis that will focus at first on the volumes most affected by recent legislative and regulatory changes.
	We announced a major review of adoption in February 2000. Part of the extensive programme of reform includes the introduction of the Adoption and Children Bill in October 2001. The Bill will comprehensively overhaul adoption legislation, regulation and related guidance, which once commenced, would necessitate the revision of volume 8 (Private Fostering and Miscellaneous) of the Children Act Guidance. Further, in the light of the changes arising from the Care Standards Act 2000, we plan to revise volumes 3 (Family Placements), 4 (Residential Care), and 5 (Independent Schools) of the guidance in the near future.

CJD

Brian Cotter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what recent investigations have been made into the increased theoretical risk of contracting CJD through blood transfusions; and if he plans to produce guidelines on the issue;
	(2)  what recent assessment he has made of the need for a test to screen donated blood for CJD with special reference to hepatitis sufferers.

Yvette Cooper: We have already taken action to reduce the theoretical risk of transferring CJD through blood and blood products. The Department and the National Blood Service are currently undertaking a programme of risk assessments on further reducing any theoretical risk from CJD to the blood supply. The Spongiform Encephalopathy Advisory Committee (SEAC) has reviewed the precautions on a number of occasions and has advised that no further regulatory action was required.
	We are supporting a number of avenues of research into a diagnostic test for CJD to enable a screening test to be developed for blood donations.
	The CJD Incidents Panel is the expert committee set up by the Department to advise health authorities and trusts how to manage incidents involving possible exposure to CJD in healthcare settings, including blood transfusions. The panel issued a public consultation paper in October 2001 on Management of possible exposure to CJD through medical procedures, for which the closing date for comments was 15 January. The panel is currently considering the responses to the consultation but continues to provide provisional advice on a precautionary basis as set out in the document.
	At the request of the panel, the Department has commissioned independent consultants to provide an updated review of the potential CJD infectivity of blood and blood products.

Contraception

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations his Department has received regarding the side effects of the contraceptive injection Depo-provera; and if he will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: The Medicines Control Agency (MCA), which is responsible for medicines regulation in the UK, and the Committee on Safety of Medicines (CSM) receive reports of suspected adverse drug reactions to medicinal products via the Yellow Card Scheme. Since marketing authorisation was granted in 1981, the MCA and CSM have received 232 such reports for Depo-provera. However, the reporting of a suspected adverse reaction does not necessarily mean that it has been caused by the drug. Many factors have to be taken into account including the possible contribution of other medications or illnesses. Since 1981, the MCA has also recorded receiving 40 requests for information about Depo-provera. In most cases, the nature of these inquiries was to seek information on suspected adverse drug reactions to Depo-provera, which are reflected in the Marketing Authorisation Summary of Product Characteristics and Patient Information Leaflet. The MCA routinely provides this information to health professionals and members of the public on request.

Malnutrition

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to her answer of 8 January 2002, Official Report, column 674W, on nutrition, how much the single assessment process for malnutrition will cost (a) each health authority and (b) in England.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 30 January 2002
	There is no single assessment process for malnutrition.
	The single assessment process for older people, published on 28 January, requires health and care professionals to assess the nutritional status of older people when it is necessary to assess their needs. Specific estimates of the cost implications of this part of the assessment have not been undertaken.

Nursing Care

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many assessments in respect of the free nursing care scheme were (a) completed by and (b) outstanding on 31 December 2001; what proportion of residents are in each category, for how many residents payments have been made to nursing homes; and what is the (i) total value of the payments and (ii) average value.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 30 January 2002
	Preliminary information available from regions of the position at the end of December, indicates that around 80 per cent. of the nursing homes with residents eligible for national health service funded nursing care had had their residents' needs for care determined by a registered nurse. The majority of the remainder will be completed by the end of this month.
	Around 99 per cent. of people in nursing homes whose needs have been determined have been found to be eligible. Of those whose needs have been determined, around 19 per cent. have been allocated to the low band; 58 per cent. to the middle band; and 22 per cent. to the high band.

Anticoagulation Therapy

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he intends to make the strips used to test the blood during oral anticoagulation therapy treatment available on prescription.

Hazel Blears: We are currently considering whether to list such strips in Part IX of the Drug Tariff, so enabling them to be prescribed by general practitioners on the national health service in England. Issues for Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland are matters for the devolved Assemblies.

Scrutiny

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what redress will be available to local authority health overview and scrutiny committees if their recommendations are not acted upon.

Hazel Blears: Overview and scrutiny of health including scrutiny of the national health service should not be considered in terms of redress, rather as a lever to improve the health of local people. Scrutiny committees, working in partnership with the NHS and other stakeholders, will seek to secure continuous improvements both of health services and services that impact upon health. This will be a significant step forward in making public services, including the NHS, more locally relevant and locally accountable.

Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he will answer the letter to him dated 11 December 2001, from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Lorna McIntyre.

Hazel Blears: A reply was sent on 5 February.

Pregnancy Advice

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the (a) approved independent sector places for abortions and (b) registered pregnancy advice bureaux in the Buckinghamshire health authority area.

Hazel Blears: The Buckinghamshire health authority has three registered pregnancy advice bureaux: BPAS High Wycombe branch; BPAS Milton Keynes branch and Marie Stopes Milton Keynes centre but no independent sector places are approved for abortions.

Walk-in Centres

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS walk-in centres there are (a) in England and Wales and (b) in the Buckinghamshire health authority area; and what plans he has for further centres.

Hazel Blears: National health service walk-in centres are being piloted as a new initiative to offer convenient access to primary care services. As pilots, they are being independently evaluated. 42 centres are now open. All of these are in England and none is in the area of Buckinghamshire health authority.
	Our decisions on the future development of NHS walk-in centres will be informed by the independent evaluation report.

Cleanliness

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will made a statement on NHS policy in respect of a cleanliness standard for patients; whether the Chief Medical Officer has made recommendations on this; whether guidelines to hospital and health trusts have been issued by his Department; and if he will make a statement.

Hazel Blears: The National Standards of Cleanliness for the national health service were announced in April 2001.
	The standards provide a comprehensive basis which hospitals can adapt for local requirements. They measure what is, or is not, clean.
	All hospitals will be required to report a score against the National Standards of Cleanliness for the NHS on an annual basis. This score will form part of the Performance Assessment Framework by which trusts performance against key targets is assessed.
	For the first time, members of the public will know how their local hospital compares against other hospitals in terms of actual cleanliness.
	All trusts in England have received guidelines on how to implement the National Standards of Cleanliness for the NHS, and a series of regional workshops were held in November 2001 to support this initiative.

Macular Degeneration

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to make Verteporfin available on the NHS for the treatment of age related macular degeneration.

Hazel Blears: The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) is currently undertaking an appraisal of this treatment and will advise if it should be made generally available under the national health service. NICE expects to publish its advice in July 2002.

Patient Confidentiality

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health under what powers, and in what circumstances, an NHS trust or other health body is permitted to pass information from patients' medical records to (a) his office and (b) the Prime Minister's office.

Hazel Blears: The powers and circumstances under or in which national health service trusts and other health bodies may pass information from patients' medical records to my office and that of my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister, are limited by the common law and the legislation on data protection and human rights which we have put on the statute book. For example, information may be disclosed where the patient to whom it relates has consented or has deliberately taken steps to make it public.

Teenage Pregnancy (South Tyneside)

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how the sexual health strategy aims to reduce teenage pregnancy rates in South Tyneside.

Yvette Cooper: The sexual health and HIV strategy is distinct from the teenage pregnancy strategy and considers the sexual health needs of all age groups. However, its main aims of improving the information provided for the public and modernising sexual health services will support implementation of the South Tyneside local teenage pregnancy strategy, which aims to halve the local under 18 conception rate by 2010.

Organ Retention

Louise Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what action he is taking to change arrangements for the removal, retention and use of human organs and tissue; and if he will make a statement.

Dave Watts: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the Government intend to introduce legislation to cover the removal and storage of human organs by hospitals and universities.

John Hutton: In his advice to the Government, published last year, the chief medical officer made 17 specific recommendations regarding the removal, retention and use of human organs and tissue. These recommendations were accepted by us. We have an extensive programme of implementation, led by the Department, which is working closely with other Government Departments and other agencies. This includes the following:
	We have established the Retained Organs Commission as a special health authority to oversee, among other things, the return of organs and tissue to families who want that to happen.
	The Home Office is leading a review of the coroners' system which was set up in July 2001.
	In January 2002 we published a number of documents for consultation, including a code of practice on communications with families about post mortems; draft forms for consent to the post mortem removal, retention and use of organs and tissue (where such actions are not required by a coroner); and an interim statement on the use of organs and tissue, based on the current law. The consent forms are linked to the Department's wider Good Practice in Consent initiative, and will shortly be piloted in a number of national health service trusts across the country. Taken together, these initiatives provide an interim framework of good practice pending changes in the law.
	We shall shortly be publishing for consultation a draft code of practice on the import and export of human body parts.
	The Department is leading a comprehensive review of the law in England and Wales which will examine, among other things, the taking, storage and use of organs and tissue from the living and the dead and options for future regulatory control. We shall be issuing a consultative paper on possible changes to the law in the near future.
	We are committed to amending the Human Tissue Act 1961 to clarify that consent must be sought from those with parental responsibility for the retention of organs or tissue from post mortems on children beyond the time necessary to establish the cause of death, and to introducing a penalty for non-compliance. This will be addressed as part of the comprehensive review.

Private Hospitals

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what percentage of private hospitals provide (a) whole-time and (b) part-time accident and emergency cover;
	(2)  what percentage of private hospitals undertaking elective surgery have (a) intensive care and (b) recovery units.

John Hutton: holding answer 28 January 2002
	The information requested is not held centrally, but when the National Care Standards Commission takes over from health authorities the regulation of private health care services on 1 April this year, it will compile a comprehensive national database about service providers and the facilities they offer.
	Private hospitals will be required to have staff available at all times trained in resuscitation, and have procedures in place for transferring patients to intensive care facilities, when necessary, if they do not have them on site. However, private hospitals will not be required to have accident and emergency departments as they treat only elective casesthey do not take casualties.

Private Hospitals

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of private hospitals have 24 hour medical cover in the form of qualified doctors.

John Hutton: holding answer 28 January 2001
	The information requested is not collected centrally. However, the national minimum standards that will come into force on 1 April when the National Care Standards Commission takes over the regulation of private hospitals, require that where an establishment provides in-patient care, there is a resident medical officer, trained in resuscitation to advanced life support level, available immediately at all times.

Tonsillectomy

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what cost-benefit analysis was performed prior to the introduction of single-use instruments for tonsillectomy.

Yvette Cooper: The decision to introduce single use instruments for tonsillectomy was taken after receiving advice from Spongiform Encephalopathy Advisory Committee (SEAC), the expert body that advises the Government on BSE and CJD, that rigorous implementation of washing, decontamination and general hygiene procedures are key measures in minimising the risk of infection. The Committee also considered that, where practicable, the use of single-use instruments for surgery was to be encouraged. The Committee identified tonsillectomies as an operation where practical steps might be readily taken.

General Practitioners Recruitment

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the NHS GP Golden Hello scheme.

John Hutton: We announced the national health service general practitioner Golden Hello Scheme in March 2001 and, after consultation with stakeholders, introduced the scheme on 2 November 2001. We are committed to keeping the scheme under review and are monitoring take-up. It is, however, still too early to draw any conclusions beyond the fact that the scheme has been generally welcomed by GPs and by their representative groups, including the General Practitioners Committee of the British Medical Association.

MMR Vaccine

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children received a mumps vaccine in (a) each county or health authority and (b) England in each of the five years before the introduction of the MMR vaccine; and what proportion those who has received the vaccine represented of the total number of children under five years of age.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 7 February 2002
	Single mumps vaccine has never been recommended in the United Kingdom and there was no data collected centrally.

MMR Vaccine

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children have received the MMR vaccine in (a) each county or health authority and (b) England in each year since its introduction; and what proportions of those who had received (i) the MMR vaccine and (ii) the single measles vaccine represented of the total number of children under five years of age.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 7 February 2002
	Information on the number of children who have received MMR vaccine by health authority has been placed in the Library. There were a number of changes in HAs over the period since MMR was introduced to date so a separate sheet is shown for each year. Routine requests for information about the uptake of single measles vaccine were discontinued in 1994 but there were no returns shown for the single vaccine after 199192.

MMR Vaccine

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children received, either by means of single or combined MMR vaccine, inoculation against (a) measles, (b) mumps and (c) rubella, in each year since the introduction of the MMR vaccine, in (i) each county or health authority and (ii) England; and what proportion they represented of the total number of children under five years of age.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 8 February 2002
	The available information about children under five years of age who have received the single measles, single rubella or MMR vaccine for each year since the introduction of MMR has been placed in the Library.
	Routine requests for information about the uptake of single measles vaccine were discontinued in 1994 and there were no returns for the single measles vaccine after 199192.
	Single rubella vaccine was not available for children under five years of age.
	Single mumps vaccine has never been recommended in the United Kingdom and there were no data collected centrally.

MMR Vaccine

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children received a single (a) mumps, (b) measles and (c) rubella vaccine in each year since the introduction of the MMR vaccine in (i) each county or health authority and (ii) England.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 8 February 2002
	The available information about children under five years of age who have received the single measles and single rubella vaccine for each year since the introduction of MMR has been placed in the Library. Routine requests for information about the uptake of single measles vaccine were discontinued in 1994 and there were no returns for the single measles vaccine after 199192. Single rubella vaccine was not available for children under five years of age.
	Single mumps vaccine has never been recommended in the United Kingdom and there were no data collected centrally.

MMR Vaccine

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research he has evaluated on the financial costs of the administration of the (a) MMR vaccination and (b) three separate vaccinations for measles, mumps and rubella.

Yvette Cooper: None. Cost is not a consideration in recommendations about MMR vaccine.

MMR Vaccine

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children received the rubella vaccine in (a) each county or health authority and (b) England in each of the five years before the introduction of the MMR vaccine; and what proportion those who had received the vaccine represented of the total number of children under five years of age.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 7 February 2002
	The rubella vaccine was not recommended for children under five years of age prior to the introduction of the combined measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine in 1988.

MMR Vaccine

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of eligible children have been vaccinated with single measles/mumps/rubella injections in the last (a) three months, (b) 12 months and (c) three years.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 11 February 2002
	The information requested is not available centrally.

MMR Vaccine

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children aged four or five years old have taken the first MMR vaccine but not the booster; and what proportion they represent of the cohorts.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 11 February 2002
	For the quarter July to September 2001, coverage of one dose of MMR at five years of age is 91.3 per cent. for England, Wales and Northern Ireland while coverage of two doses of MMR at five years of age is 73.4 per cent. By five years of age, 17.9 per cent. of children immunised with one dose of MMR have not received the second dose at school entry.

MMR Vaccine

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the anticipated cost is of the planned MMR advertising campaign; and when it was first commissioned.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 11 February 2002
	Work to provide information on MMR to health professionals and the public is ongoing and has continued over several years, as part of a programme of work on immunisation information. The full details of any new MMR information campaign have yet to be confirmed.

MMR Vaccine

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost is per patient of a course of (a) MMR vaccine, (b) single measles vaccine, (c) single rubella vaccine and (d) single mumps vaccine.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 11 February 2002
	I refer to the reply given to the hon. Member for the Vale of York (Miss McIntosh) on 20 March 2001, Official Report, column 133W.

MMR Vaccine

Julie Kirkbride: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when and upon what advice the Government withdrew the licence for single vaccinations of measles, mumps and rubella in the United Kingdom.

Yvette Cooper: We have never received advice to withdraw the licences for single vaccinations of measles, mumps or rubella.
	One mumps vaccine, four rubella and four measles vaccines have a current licence.

MMR Vaccine

Julie Kirkbride: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which countries in the EU allow children to be given single inoculations for measles, mumps and rubella.

Yvette Cooper: My answer of 12 February 2002, Official Report, column 321W, contained an inadvertent error in that it stated prevent instead of permit. The correct position is: As far as we are aware, all European Union countries recommend MMR as the safest way to protect children.
	We are not aware of any EU country where the health service routinely offers parents a choice of MMR or single vaccines against measles, mumps and rubella.
	Like the United Kingdom, EU countries permit the use of licensed vaccines, including single vaccines.

NHS Expenditure

Denzil Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his estimate is of the planned expenditure in England on the national health service as a percentage of England's GDP in (a) 200102, (b) 200203 and (c) 200304.

John Hutton: We cannot provide the information as requested, because gross domestic product figures for England, over the period asked for are not available. The figures for the United Kingdom are shown in the table.
	
		National health service expenditure (UK) as a percentage of gross -- domestic product
		
			   Percentage 
		
		
			 200102 6.3 
			 200203 6.5 
			 200304 6.6

Hereford and Worcester Ambulance Service

Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the performance of the Hereford and Worcester Ambulance Service in 2001.

Yvette Cooper: Our objective is to save more lives by providing faster, more responsive and effective emergency ambulance services.
	I am advised that Worcestershire health authority invested 893,000 last year to put extra ambulance staff at Kidderminster to ensure that the Accident and Emergency service in the Wyre Forest area continued to be as effective as before the changes to Kidderminster hospital Accident and Emergency department.
	This investment, along with changes to working practices which are in line with changes made nationally in all ambulance services, have ensured that the level of emergency service provided by the Hereford and Worcester Ambulance Service NHS Trust is among the best in the United Kingdom. Indeed, in December 2001 the trust was the second fastest service in England in responding to life-threatening calls.

Podiatry/Chiropody

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) podiatrists and (b) chiropodists work in each of the primary care trust areas in the UK; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: Work force statistics collected on scientific, therapeutic and technical staff which includes chiropody/podiatry staff annually for all national health service organisations in England. The table shows the figures for primary care trusts only.
	
		NHS hospital and community health services (HCHS): Chiropody/ podiatry staff working in primary care trusts, in England by regional office area as at 30 September 2001
		
			   All chiropody/podiatry staff 
		
		
			 Whole-time equivalents  
			 All Primary Care Trusts 940 
			 Northern and Yorkshire 90 
			 Trent 140 
			 West midlands 20 
			 North-west 160 
			 Eastern 140 
			 London 170 
			 South-east 170 
			 South-west 70 
			 Headcount  
			 All Primary Care Trusts 1,170 
			 Northern and Yorkshire 110 
			 Trent 170 
			 West midlands 20 
			 North-west 200 
			 Eastern 170 
			 London 200 
			 South-east 200 
			 South-west 100 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10
	2. Due to rounding figures may not equal the sum of component parts
	Source:
	Department of Health Non-Medical Workforce Census

Podiatry/Chiropody

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has for assistance to those people refused treatment by the Podiatry Service due to failing to meet the medical criteria yet incapable of looking after their feet; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: Responsibility for the provision of national health service chiropody/podiatry services rests with individual NHS organisations. It is for them to decide what criteria to apply to clinically prioritise access to chiropody/podiatry services but vulnerable groups of people such as older people, children and people with diabetes and those with learning disabilities should normally receive priority.

Podiatry/Chiropody

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people used the Podiatry Service within the NHS in the last 12 months for which figures are available; what estimate he has made of how many people will be refused treatment by the Podiatry Service within the NHS as a result of the new guidelines; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: In 200001, the latest year for which figures are available, 2.25 million people received national health service chiropody services. Information about patient contracts with the chiropody service in England is collected on Department's return KT23 and published each year. The latest publication Chiropody services: summary information for 200001, England is in the Library and is available on the Department's website at www.doh.gov.uk/public/kt230001.
	The Department has not issued any guidelines to the national health service on the provision of chiropody/ podiatry services. It is the responsibility of local commissioners to determine the needs of their local population and provide services within available resources.

Podiatry/Chiropody

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidelines the NHS has given to community care trusts with regard to the podiatry treatment to be offered to patients under the NHS; who set the criteria; whether the patient may challenge the criteria; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: The Department has not issued any guidelines to the national health service on the provision of chiropody/podiatry services. It is the responsibility of local commissioners to determine the needs of their local population and provide services within available resources. Therefore criteria, if set, will be determined locally. Patients can use complaints procedures about any treatment issue and in the first instance they should contact the complaints manager at the hospital concerned or their health authority.

Antibiotics

Evan Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the cost to the national health service of over-prescribing of antibiotics in each of the last five years.

Hazel Blears: We have no direct evidence of over- prescribing of antibiotics. However, in the light of concerns over antimicrobial resistance we have taken action to ensure the appropriate use of antibiotics with the result that prescriptions issued over the period 1997 to 2000 have fallen by around 20 per cent.

Workforce Numbers Advisory Board

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the budget is of the Workforce Numbers Advisory Board.

John Hutton: The Workforce Numbers Advisory Board does not have a budget.
	Its role is to consider detailed workforce analysis to support optimum use of the Department's 2,940 million multi professional education and training budget.

Road Traffic Acts

Evan Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  when he plans to reintroduce regulations on the NHS charges under the Road Traffic Acts;
	(2)  what recent representations he has received on the Road Traffic (NHS Charges) Amendment Regulations;
	(3)  for what reason the Road Traffic (NHS Charges) Amendment Regulations were revoked.

Hazel Blears: The Road Traffic (NHS Charges) Amendment Regulations 2001 came into force on 28 January 2002. Following representations made by, and on behalf of, the insurance industry that the introduction of the regulations had taken place without adequate consultation the regulations were revoked and the previous rates reinstated with effect from 8 February 2002.
	Consultation will take place, in due course, on the content and timing of further amendments to the regulations.

NHS Dentistry (Wirral)

Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on access to NHS dentistry on the Wirral.

Hazel Blears: In the quarter October to December 2001 65 per cent. of children were registered with an NHS dentist compared with 61 per cent. in England and 57 per cent. of adults in Wirral were registered compared to 45 per cent. in England.
	Wirral dentists have received 350,788 from the 35 million dentistry modernisation fund announced in May 2001, which has been used locally to increase the provision and scope of surgery and modernise premises and upgrade equipment.
	Two Personal Dental Service Pilots have been established in Wirral with central funding. One is bringing dentistry for the first time to the Leasowe Housing estate, a very socially disadvantaged area in North Wirral.

Smallpox Vaccine

Robert Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the existing UK stocks of smallpox vaccine have undergone tests for efficacy and safety, with particular reference to TSE, in line with recommendations by the Medicines Control Agency and EMEA.

John Hutton: holding answer 5 January 2002
	Existing United Kingdom stocks of smallpox vaccine are held on behalf of the Secretary of State for Health, but do not have a current marketing authorisation (licence) issued by the Medicines Control Agency (MCA). There were originally three licences for smallpox vaccine held by my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State. At the request of the licence holder, these licences were cancelled in the early 1990s.
	The UK stocks of vaccine have been tested on a regular basis for potency. Last year the Department asked the holder of the stocks to recheck the viability of the virus in the vaccine and to repeat the safety and quality control tests originally performed on vaccine stocks as described in the World Health Organisation recommendations on smallpox vaccine manufacture.
	Because of the particular nature of the disease for which this vaccine was developed it has never been possible to conduct formal clinical trials in humans to demonstrate efficacy in the prevention of smallpox that would normally support an application for a licence for a medicinal product.
	The vaccines held in stock are no longer licensed medicinal products and were not therefore included in the exercise undertaken in all member states of the European Union, by way of implementing Commission Directive 1999/82/EC, to require all marketing authorisation (licence) holders to demonstrate that their products comply with the current guideline. Compliance with these guidelines has been a legal requirement for new licence applications since 1 July 2000 and for products already on the market since 1 March 2001.

Entertainment Costs

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list for 199798 and each subsequent financial year the amount spent by (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) its non-departmental public bodies in respect of hotel and other similar privately-provided accommodation (i) in the UK and (ii) abroad for (A) Ministers, (B) staff and (C) other persons; if he will list the proportion of this cost incurred in respect of (x) food and (y) alcohol in each case; and if he will list the average cost per hotel room or similar unit of accommodation provided in each case.

Jacqui Smith: Since 1999 we have published an annual list of all visits overseas undertaken by Cabinet Ministers costing 500 or more during each financial year.
	We have also published on an annual basis the cost of all Ministers' visits overseas. The 1999 list contained information on all such visits undertaken from 2 May 1997 to 31 April 1999. Copies of the lists are available in the Library.
	All travel is undertaken fully in accordance with the rules set out in the Ministerial Code and Travel by Ministers, copies of which are available in the Library.

Legal Costs

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what legal costs have been incurred by his Department in each of the last four years.

Hazel Blears: The figures represent what the Department has spent in the last four complete years on legal advice, legal representation and on costs awarded against it in court.
	
		
			 Year  million 
		
		
			 19971998 2.8 
			 19981999 3.6 
			 19992000 4.3 
			 200001 5.3

Macmillan Nurses

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations he has received from Macmillan Cancer Relief about training district nurses; and if he will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: We have received no representations from Macmillan Cancer Relief about the training of district nurses. Macmillan, amongst other voluntary bodies, has been involved in the planning and implementation of a training and support programme for district and community nurses initiated under the NHS Cancer Plan. We have made 6 million available over the next three years to support over 10,000 nurses in primary care to take part in new training and support in the general principles and practice of palliative care. The training programme will help district and community nurses to support people with cancer, in remaining at home for as long as possible during their illness.

National Care Standards Commission

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the proposed establishment numbers are for the National Care Standards Commission for each category of staff.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 6 February 2002
	The National Care Standards Commission is funded to employ 1,475 inspectors. Managerial, advisory and administrative staff will bring the total funded establishment to 2,440.

Cytology

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if guidance based on the report on liquid-based cytology will be available by May; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what (a) plans he has made and (b) budgets he has put in place in advance of the NICE decision on liquid-based cytology.

Hazel Blears: The evaluation report of the liquid based cytology arm of the pilot will now be available in the autumn, once the full clinical record of each woman in the pilot has been received for the purposes of the evaluation. The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) will begin the reappraisal of liquid-based cytology techniques once the evaluation report has been received. The pilot will inform the planning and resource requirements needed for liquid-based cytology if NICE recommends its introduction.

Aircraft Noise (Children)

George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent research he has commissioned into the effect of aircraft noise on young children.

Yvette Cooper: As part of a joint programme with the Department for the Environment and Food and Rural Affairs, we have commissioned a research programme designed to study the non-auditory health effects of noise.
	Five research projects were funded under this programme, one of which was West London Schools study aircraft noise at school and children's cognitive performance and stress responses. This study was led by Professor S. Stansfeld at Queen Mary and Westfield College.
	Full details of the study are available on the Department's website at www.doh.gov.uk/hef/airpol/ aipolh.htm.

Food Labelling

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent representations he has made to other EU countries on labelling the origin of meat and meat products.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 6 February 2002
	The Food Standards Agency is responsible for representing the United Kingdom at working level on these matters and has taken the lead in pressing for changes to European labelling rules to require country of origin labelling on a wider range of foods, particularly meat products. It is also pressing for changes that would prevent misleading labelling by restricting the use of terms like produce of to those foods where the main ingredients come from, and production processes occur in, the named place or country. Other EU member states support the UK's initiative on this issue.

Terminally Ill Patients

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to improve out-of-hours home care for patients who are terminally ill.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 7 February 2002
	A supportive and palliative care strategy is being developed under the NHS Cancer Plan to ensure best treatment and care from when cancer is first suspected through to death and bereavement. Part of this strategy includes a review of out-of-hours palliative care services working with other key organisations such as Macmillan Cancer Relief.

Zyban

Marion Roe: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research is planned into the effectiveness of Zyban in assisting people to stop smoking; and what plans he has to review the funding of Zyban on the NHS.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 7 February 2002
	At the time of licensing, the Committee on Safety of Medicines considered that Zyban (bupropion hydrochloride) met appropriate standards of quality, safety and efficacy to justify its licence for use as an aid to smoking cessation in combination with motivational support in nicotine-dependent patients. Subsequent studies (conducted by Glaxosmithkline, the Marketing Authorisation holder) have confirmed that Zyban is an effective aid to smoking cessation. There are no plans to commission further research into the efficacy of Zyban.
	We expect health authorities and primary care trusts to fund the provision of Zyban and other smoking cessation services from their general allocations which are increasing in real terms by an average 7.2 per cent. next year. We have no plans to alter these arrangements.

Respiratory Disease

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how much has been spent on (a) research, (b) treatment and (c) prevention of asthma since 1997; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how much has been spent on (a) research, (b) treatment and (c) prevention of lung diseases since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: Information on expenditure on lung diseases and asthma is not collected centrally. The British Thoracic Society estimated in November 2001, in a report entitled The Burden of Lung Disease that the total cost of respiratory disease to the national health service is around 2.5 billion.
	The main Government agency for research into the cause and treatments of disease is the Medical Research Council (MRC). The MRC spent a total of 12.2 million in 19992000 on research into asthma and respiratory disorders. The MRC additionally supports research on lung cancer that is not included in this figure.
	The Department has spent an estimated 7.24 million on directly commissioned asthma research projects since 1997. The Department has also spent an estimated 3.45 million on directly commissioned research relating to lung disease since 1997. The forward commitment for ongoing projects is currently an estimated 1.41 million.
	Smoking is one of the major causes of lung disease. In 1998 the Government published the first White Paper on Tobacco Smoking Kills. To date it has invested around 130 million to implement the strategy set out in that document.

Anti-Smoking Strategies

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures have been introduced since 1997 to dissuade young people from smoking.

Yvette Cooper: In December 1998 we launched the first ever cross-Government strategy to reduce smoking levels. In 'Smoking Kills' we set targets to reduce smoking among children aged 1115 from 13 per cent. to 11 per cent. by 2005, and nine per cent. by 2010. We have already delivered on the 2005 target for children aged 1115. The latest available survey results show that in 2000 the percentage of regular smokers in this age group was 10 per cent.
	Any programme to reduce smoking among children and young people must involve cross-Government and cross- agency working. The Department has worked closely with other Departments to introduce measures to control the supply of tobacco and educate young people about the dangers of smoking.
	The Department has agreed an enforcement protocol with local authorities to strengthen the enforcement of the existing legislation on under-age sales of cigarettes. The Department supports proof of age card schemes, which protect shopkeepers and children alike, as well as measures to restrict the siting of cigarette vending machines.
	In December 1999 the Department launched a national tobacco education campaign to help smokers to give up and to persuade non-smokers, particularly children not to start. In 2001 a peer-to-peer communication project encouraged groups of young people to produce a series of films expressing their views on smoking. The films have been shown on cable television and plans are being developed for wider distribution including a teaching pack for schools.

Foster Care

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what measures he is proposing to make foster care easier; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what financial provision is given to foster carers who are unable to work owing to their commitment to the children in their care.

Jacqui Smith: Caring for another person's child is not an easy task and those that take on the role of foster carer perform a very important role for society. The assessment and approval processes ensure that the potential carer has a proper understanding of the task ahead. Additionally, training and support from the fostering service provides carers with the opportunities to further their knowledge, understanding and ability to manage the role they have taken on. The Government is constantly looking for ways in which to better support foster carers. New regulations and national minimum standards will come into force in April and these will form a more comprehensive legislative framework for all concerned with the delivery of fostering.
	Foster carers are paid an allowance by the local authority to care for a child. The allowance covers the usual costs of looking after a child, and many local authorities operate a reward payment scheme for their foster carers in addition to the basic allowance. These payments are linked to the carer's skills and abilities to meet the needs of children who are fostered, and with their commitment to training and skills development.
	Matters relating to Scotland are for the devolved Administration.

Strategic Health Authority (Shropshire and Staffordshire)

David Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many full-time equivalent posts are planned for the staffing of the new strategic health authority covering Shropshire and Staffordshire.

Yvette Cooper: In accordance with the Shifting the Balance of Power Document The Next Steps paragraph 2.5.5, the staffing levels will be capped at 75 with costs of 4 million. The chief executives are in the process of putting together their franchise plans, in which actual staffing levels will be finalised.

Radiotherapy

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what target he has set for waiting time for cancer patients requiring radiotherapy from the NHS.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 8 February 2002
	The NHS Cancer Plan set out waiting time targets for cancer treatment, including radiotherapy, which will be implemented over the next four years. From December 2001, there is a one month maximum wait from diagnosis to treatment for breast cancer and a one month wait from urgent general practitioner referral to treatment for children's, testicular and acute leukaemia. By 2005, there will be a maximum one month wait from diagnosis to treatment for all cancers.

Emergency Contraception

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost to the consumer is of emergency contraception at a pharmacy; what plans he has to lower the charge; and if he will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: Emergency contraception is available through direct sale in pharmacies to women aged 16 and over usually at a cost of 19.99. We do not control the prices at which medicines are sold to the public. Emergency contraception remains free of charge from the National Health Service.

Donor Scheme

Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to replace the opt-in donor scheme with an opt-out scheme.

Jacqui Smith: We have no plans to introduce an opt-out scheme for organ donation. We are in the process of undertaking a comprehensive review of the law governing the taking, removal and use of human tissue, and will be issuing a consultation paper shortly.

Tobacco Products

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what standards the Government sets to protect consumers from toxins in (a) smoking and (b) chewing tobacco products; and whether she has taken advice from the (i) Chief Medical Officer and (ii) Scientific Committee on Tobacco and Health on appropriate standards for the protection of public health.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 11 February 2002
	Upper limits on tar yields from cigarettes were established by Directive 90/239/EEC and are regulated under the Tobacco Products Labelling (Safety) regulations 1991. The limits will reduce under the provisions of EC Directive 2001/37/EC and limits will also apply to nicotine and carbon monoxide yields.
	Additives to tobacco products are assessed using the guidelines detailed in the report to the Chief Medical Officer from the Scientific Committee on Tobacco and Health (SCOTH) (Annex K, appendix 1) as part of the voluntary agreement. It is under this agreement that the Department maintains a list of approved additives with details of individual and aggregate usage limits. The list of approved additives is published on the department of health website at www.doh.gov.uk/scoth. Tobacco companies are required to submit annual certificates of compliance with these limits.
	Copies of Tobacco Products Labelling (Safety) regulations 1991 and the report from the Scientific Committee on Tobacco and Health (SCOTH) including the guidelines are available in the Library.

NHS Funded Activity (Private Sector)

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  whether he has completed his review of information needs as regards NHS funded activity in the private sector; and if he will make a statement on his conclusion;
	(2)  when he expects to publish the key results of his survey of the amount of activity purchased by the NHS within the private sector; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: holding answer 11 February 2002
	The Department is working to improve the collection of routine information about National Health Service activity undertaken by the independent sector and is making arrangements to collect data on such activity through NHS management information returns to the Department. It will be some time before information gathered in this way is available for publication.
	Validation and analysis of the survey returns from the NHS for the Department's survey of NHS organisations' use of the independent sector, is being finalised. We expect to be able to share key findings shortly.

NHS Professionals

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what measures he has introduced to gauge the physical and mental fitness of managers working within NHS Professionals;
	(2)  what measures are in place to ensure the financial viability of NHS Professionals;
	(3)  what training is being provided to NHS Professionals' call centre staff;
	(4)  what measures he has put in place to ensure that the management structure of NHS Professionals adequately reflects the size of the agency and the volume and complexity of the services it provides;
	(5)  whether managers working within NHS Professionals will be required to hold nationally recognised management qualifications;
	(6)  what measures are in place to ensure the management structure of NHS Professionals allows sufficient flexibility for the organisation to (a) respond to the changing needs and circumstances of service users and (b) maintain an effective quality control system;
	(7)  what measures he has put in place to ensure that managers working within NHS Professionals have the necessary qualifications, skills and experience to provide trusts with temporary health care staff;
	(8)  what measures are in place to ensure that (a) the size and layout of NHS Professionals' premises are appropriate for the effective management of the services which the agency provides and (b) the premises are kept clean and suitably equipped and furnished;
	(9)  which body has responsibility for (a) regulating the performance of NHS Professionals and (b) investigating complaints made against the service provider.

John Hutton: holding answer 11 February 2002
	The National Health Service Professionals initiative is being implemented nationally in three phased approach, highlighted in detail in HSC 200102 NHS ProfessionalsFlexible Organisations, Flexible Staff. To date the service has been extended to 38 sites. An evaluation is being undertaken at the moment of the existing sites.
	A national project board has been established that includes representatives from the NHS and Department of Health, that is responsible for the development of NHS Professionals. Regional project boards will closely manage the development across regions. Each site has its own project structure to manage and monitor implementation.
	This structure will ensure that measures are in place to address:
	1. The physical and mental fitness of managers working within NHS Professionals is gauged.
	2. Managers working within NHS Professionals having the necessary and appropriate qualifications, skills and experience to provide trusts with temporary health care staff.
	3. Need for appropriate training and development to be provided to NHS Professionals' call-centre staff.
	4. The size and layout of NHS Professionals' premises are appropriate for the effective management of the services that NHS Professionals provides, and that they are kept clean and suitably equipped and furnished.
	5. The financial viability of NHS Professionals.
	6. The management structure of NHS Professionals adequately reflects the size of NHS Professionals, and the volume and complexity of the services it provides; and allows for sufficient flexibility for the organisation to respond to the changing needs and circumstances of service users and maintain effective quality control systems.
	7. The investigation of complaints and monitoring of performance.

Care Home Beds (Bromsgrove)

Julie Kirkbride: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the number of care home beds lost in the Bromsgrove constituency in (a) the last year and (b) the last two years.

Yvette Cooper: Information for the Bromsgrove constituency is not available centrally. The number of residential and nursing care homes and beds in Worcestershire is shown in the table.
	
		Number of residential and nursing care homes and beds in Worcestershire, 1999 to 2001. At 31 March
		
			Residential care homes  Nursing care homes, hospitals and clinics  
			   Homes Places Homes Places 
		
		
			 1999 317 3,781 104 3,226 
			 2000 314 3,719 100 2,831 
			 2001 303 3,530 98 2,670 
		
	
	Source: Department of Health annual returns

Standard Spending Assessments

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the level in 200203 was of (a) personal services SSA per resident, (b) personal social services SSA per resident over 65, and (c) personal social services SSA per resident under 18 years of age for (i) Buckinghamshire, (ii) Milton Keynes, (iii) Oxfordshire, (iv) Bedfordshire, (v) Hertfordshire, (vi) Northamptonshire, (vii) Windsor and Maidenhead, (viii) Hillingdon, (ix) Harrow, (x) Kingston-upon-Thames, (xi) Ealing and (xii) England.

Jacqui Smith: The personal social services spending assessment figures requested are shown in the table.
	
		 
		
			 Local authority Total PSS SSA per resident Elderly(93) SSA per resident 65+ Children's SSA per resident 017 
		
		
			 Buckinghamshire 130.32 579.80 85.90 
			 Milton Keynes 146.03 759.67 143.23 
			 Oxfordshire 135.29 603.92 97.66 
			 Bedfordshire 141.53 630.70 104.66 
			 Hertfordshire 162.91 708.21 109.22 
			 Northamptonshire 144.77 627.09 114.75 
			 Windsor and Maidenhead 134.57 540.98 100.16 
			 Hillingdon 177.96 738.64 173.77 
			 Harrow 189.09 833.28 158.73 
			 Kingston-upon-Thames 159.03 663.26 156.73 
			 Ealing 221.66 902.34 293.90 
			 
			 England 184.63 703.61 169.29 
		
	
	(93) Includes elderly residential and elderly domiciliary SSAs

Landfill Sites (Health Effects)

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent evidence he has received concerning the damaging effects caused to the health of people living near landfill sites.

Yvette Cooper: The Department is aware of a number of research studies published in the scientific literature, which investigate health outcomes in people living near landfill sites. These have been considered by the Department, which has sought advice from the independent expert advisory committee, the committee on the toxicity of chemicals in food, consumer products and the environment (COT). They felt that it was not possible to draw any definite conclusions regarding possible health effects from these studies and further research was warranted. The most recent statement by the COT is available on the Department's website (www.doh.gov.uk/ landh.htm). The Government have commissioned a programme of work on the impacts on health of landfill sites, details of which are also available on the website, and the Department continues to monitor relevant publications.

Child Care Workers

Debra Shipley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer of 6 February 2002, Official Report, column 1041W, ref 19094, on child care workers, what measures he has taken to ensure that employers of child care workers notify the Secretary of State when they have dismissed a person from a child care position on the grounds of misconduct which harmed a child or placed a child at risk of harm.

Jacqui Smith: Guidance on the operation of the Protection of Children Act 1999 was published in September 2000 and distributed to a large range of child care organisations. This guidance explains the statutory responsibilities placed on child care organisations to refer names to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State in certain circumstances. The guidance continues to be made available and is published at the Department's website for easy access.
	Additionally, local authority children's services are regularly inspected by the social services inspectorate. These inspections include scrutiny of the provisions for children's safeguards to ensure the requirements of the Children Act and subsequent legislation and regulations are being implemented.

Care Beds

Gerry Steinberg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many care beds were (a) closed in the public sector and (b) created in the private sector in each year from 1990 to 1997;
	(2)  how many care beds have been closed in (a) the private sector and (b) the public sector since 1997; and how many have been created in each sector since 1997.

Jacqui Smith: Information on the number of home care beds closures or new home care beds is not centrally available. The number of care home beds in independent homes and local authority staffed homes is presented in the table.
	
		Number of residential and nursing care home beds in independent homes and local authority staffed homes, England, 1997 to 2001 -- Rounded numbers
		
			 At 31 March (a) Total number of care beds in independent(94) care homes (b) Total number of care beds in local authority staffed homes 
		
		
			 1990 310,700 120,300 
			 1991 345,000 112,600 
			 1992 367,900 100,900 
			 1993 385,000 90,200 
			 1994 402,900 81,200 
			 1995 416,900 75,500 
			 1996 429,500 72,700 
			 1997(95) 468,600 65,800 
			 1998 489,500 64,000 
			 1999 487,200 59,000 
			 2000 483,800 55,500 
			 2001 477,100 50,900 
		
	
	(94) The figures relate to residential care beds in independent residential homes and nursing beds in private nursing homes, hospitals and clinics.
	(95) The number of nursing beds in 1997 refers to the period 1 October 1996 to 31 March 1997.
	Source:
	Department of Health's annual returns.

Drug Administration (School Staff)

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health under what conditions (a) school nurses and (b) other school staff may administer (i) aspirin, (ii) MMR vaccine, (iii) other vaccines and (iv) the morning after pill without parental consent.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 11 February 2002
	The guidance Supporting Pupils with Medical Needs issued by the Department for Education and Skills covers circumstances in which medication may be administered, and underlines the need for a clear policy to be set out, drawn up in partnership with parents. School staff should generally not give aspirin to pupils and never to a child under 12 years of age, unless prescribed. Parents must give consent to their child's participation in any immunisation programme, for which school nurses are responsible. Other school staff do not conduct immunisation programmes.
	School nurses may provide prescription only medicines, like the morning after pill, to pupils within the legal framework and arrangements set out in Patient Group Directions. There are no circumstances in which other school staff may supply emergency contraception. The necessity for parental consent to these measures depends on whether or not a child is considered to be competent to give consent. Children and young people are often able to provide their own consent for medicationwhere they are considered to be competent under the Frazer Guidelines set out in 1985. Involving parents is recognised to be good practice but the primary duty is to the child's best interests.

Secondments

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the names of staff who have been seconded to his Department from the private sector since May 1997, indicating (a) the names of the organisation from which each has come, (b) their responsibilities and Civil Service grades within his Department, (c) the organisation responsible for paying their salary and (d) the start and end dates of their secondment.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 12 February 2002
	Secondments and attachments are part of the Interchange Initiative which promotes the exchange of people and good practice between the Civil Service and other organisations. Before an interchange can occur all parties must be satisfied that no conflict of interest arises.
	Details of secondments from the private sector commencing in the years shown are in the table.
	
		
			 Dates Companies seconded from: Civil service grade Job title Section seconded to: Summary of work undertaken 
		
		
			 November 1995 to November 1997 Nabarro Nathanson   
			 July 1996 to July 1997 Walker Morris   
			 June 1996 to March 1997 Secta Group Ltd.   
			 December 1996 to January 1998 Tarmac plc   
			 January 1997 to September 1997 Private Finance PanelExecutive (3)   
			 February 1997 to January 1998 Private Finance PanelExecutive (3)   
			 April 1997 to July 1998 Private Finance PanelExecutive (3)The secondees to the Private Finance Unit of the NHSExecutive are equivalent to civil service grade IP4 and titledSecondees to the Private Finance Unit of the NHS Executive  
			 July 1997 to July 1998 Pinsent Curtis'Consultant' except the secondee from Tarmac who wasadvise NHS Trusts on legal  
			 September 1997 to August 1998 Deloitte  Toucheequivalent to civil service grade SCS and was Head of thePrivate Finance Unitand financial aspects of PFI contracts 
			 September 1997 to September 1998 Beachcroft Stanley   
			 January 1998 to July 1998 Dickinson Dees   
			 May 1998 to May 1999 PricewaterhouseCooper   
			 June 1998 to June 1999 Ward Hadaway   
			 July 1998 to June 1999 Lloyds Bank plc   
			 February 1999 to November 1999 Hempson   
			 March 1999 to January 2000 Berwin Leighton   
			 September 1999 to December 2001 British Airways SCS Branch Head Organisational Development Developing the Department's capacity to change in order to deliver Minister's priorities and to be recognised as a leader in civil service reform 
			   
			 July 1999 to April 2000 Addleshaw Booth  Co.   
			 October 1999 to October 2000 Deloitte  Touche   
			 November 1999 to January 2001 Taylor Woodrow   
			 December 1999 to August 2000 Herbert Smith   
			 March 2000 to July 2000 MacFarlanes   
			 July 2000 to April 2001 Capsticks   
			 August 2000 to September 2001 Walker Morris  Secondees to the Private Finance 
			 August 2000 to July 2001 Beachcroft WansboroughThe secondees to the Private Finance Unit of the NHSUnit of the NHS Executive  
			 October 2000 to October 2001 Ernst  YoungExecutive are equivalent to civil service grade IP4 andtitled 'Consultant'.advise NHS trusts on legal and financial aspects of PFI  
			 January 2001 to December 2001 KPMG  contracts. 
			 May 2001 to July 2001 Berwin Leighton   
			 September 2001 to September 2002 Hornergold  Hills   
			 November 2001 to November 2002 Grant Thornton   
			 December 2001 to November 2002 Deloitte  Touche   
			 January 2002 to July 2002 AMEC   
			 February 2002 to August 2002 Eversheds   
		
	
	Note:
	For the secondees to the Private Finance Unit the Department of Health negotiates a reimbursement fee with the individual company to cover the period of the secondment.

Secondments

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many staff were seconded between (a) PWC Consulting and PricewaterhouseCoopers, (b) Ernst  Young, (c) Deloitte  Touche, (d) KPMG and (e) Andersen and his Department in (i) 19992000, (ii) 200001 and (iii) April 2001 to the latest date for which figures are available.

Hazel Blears: Interchange is a key component of the reform agenda. The Modernising Government White Paper committed us to increasing Interchange, in particular by bringing in more people on secondment and sending more of our people out. Secondments and attachments are part of the Interchange Initiative, which promotes the exchange of people and good practice between the Civil Service and other organisations. All sectors of the economy are involved: voluntary, education, health, public and private.
	Centrally held records indicate that the following secondments have taken place:
	19992000
	A Secondment from Deloitte  Touche to the Department of Health, providing advice to NHS Trusts on legal and financial aspects of PFI contracts.
	200001
	Three secondments from, respectively, Deloitte  Touche, Ernst and Young, and KPMG. In addition there was a reciprocal secondment (Job swap) from Deloitte  Touche to the Department of Health, with the Deloitte  Touche secondee to the Department being involved in developing PFI policy and approving schemes. The Department of Health secondee to Deloitte  Touche is involved with various NHS Health related projects and research work.

Learning Disability

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many local learning disability partnership boards have met to consider updated joint investment plans; and how many such agreed plans were submitted to regional offices of his Department before 1 February;
	(2)  if he will make a statement on progress in the implementation of his strategy for learning disability, and on future arrangements for monitoring its implementation;
	(3)  how many local learning disability partnership boards have been established; and how many remain to be constituted.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 13 February 2002
	The Government's strategy for improving services for people with learning disabilities and their families is set out in the white paper Valuing People: A New Strategy for Learning Disability for the 21st Century (Cm 5086), published in March 2001.
	For progress made on implementation and arrangements for monitoring the difference the policies set out in Valuing People will make, I refer the hon. Member to the report I gave during the debate on this subject on 1 February 2002, Official Report, columns 53578, progress includes:
	Nine regional conferences held in June and July 2001 to publicise Valuing People.
	Implementation guidance issued on 31 August 2001.
	A national conference on the theme of partnership working held on 9 January 2002.
	A Director of Implementation and members of the Implementation Support Team appointed.
	The chair, co-chair, and members of the Learning Disability Task Force appointed. The Task Force met for the first time on 19 December. Its second meeting was on 14 February.
	Work has started on commissioning a national survey of people with learning disabilities.
	A funding programme for advocacy schemes is under way.
	Guidance has been issued on involving service users in decision making and on person centred planning. Guidance is being prepared, and will be issued within the next few months, on health action plans, partnership working, and housing options.
	Work is well advanced on establishing a National Forum for People with Learning Disabilities.
	A telephone information and helpline, with matched funding from the Department of Health and MENCAP, was launched on 3 December 2001. It received nearly 700 inquiries in its first five weeks.
	Decisions have been taken on projects to be funded under a 2 million learning disability research initiative.
	Both Valuing People and the implementation guidance (Health Service Circular/Local Authority Circular HSC 2001/016: LAC (2001)23) published in August 2001 set out arrangements for monitoring implementation (copies of both documents are available in the Library).
	We will continue to monitor progress through a range of performance assessment mechanisms, a survey of learning disabled people, and measurement against specific performance indicators that are currently being developed. We will report progress annually to Parliament.
	The implementation guidance issued in August 2001 reminded local authorities that Learning Disability Partnership Boards should be set up in each local authority area by 31 October 2001 to take forward implementation of the Valuing People proposals at local level.
	Partnership Boards were asked to complete and return updated joint investment plans (JIPs) to the Department's Social Services inspectorate social care regional offices by 31 January 2002. The JIPs should include local action plans for implementing the Valuing People programme.
	By 8 February all but two JIPs had been returned, most being received on or before 31 January. The outstanding JIPs are being followed up. All Partnership Boards have been constituted as required by the implementation circular, but information is not held centrally on how many have met or met specifically to consider their JIPs. The guidance made it clear, however, that updated JIPs should be agreed by all agencies represented on the Partnership Boards.
	The first priority of the learning disability Implementation Team will be to establish links and contacts with learning disability partnership boards. The team will work with any boards whose JIPs are found, following the evaluation now under way, to be below an acceptable standard to help them take remedial action and ensure that improvements in local services are achieved.

Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS Trust

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the future management of Barnet Chase Farm NHS Trust.

John Hutton: holding answer 13 February 2002
	On 11 February, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State announced that the best National Health Service managers would be appointed to replace the chief executive at four zero rated NHS trusts. One of those trusts was Barnet and Chase Farm. The decision to move to franchising Barnet and Chase Farm NHS Trust follows serious concerns raised by the Commission for Health Improvement about radiology services at the trust.
	The franchises for the trust chief executive posts will be open to NHS managers with a proven track record of delivery. Each franchise will run for three years and be annually reviewed to ensure improvements are being made. Franchises for these hospitals are expected to be made in April.
	New chief executives will be appointed to the four trusts on the basis of a three-year franchise plan setting out how services will be improved. Franchise bids will address the specific weaknesses of the trusts that resulted in them being given a zero star rating and will also show how improvements in performance can be sustained throughout the trust.
	Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS Trust supports any initiative which drives up standards in hospitals and as such welcomes the franchise announcement and looks forward to more details about how this will directly affect the trust.
	Following the resignation of the chief executive of the trust, as an interim measure Paul O'Connor, formerly Director of Operations at King's College Hospital NHS Trust, has been appointed as acting chief executive.

Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS Trust

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients (a) overall, (b) from the London Borough of Barnet and (c) from Hendon constituency (i) were affected by the backlog in ultrasound tests at Barnet Chase Farm NHS Trust and (ii) remain to be seen; when they are expected to be seen; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: holding answer 13 February, 2002
	There were 2,700 ultrasound test requests delayed inappropriately at Chase Farm Hospital. I understand that none of these requests related to Barnet or Hendon residents. The 400 requests currently outstanding will be undertaken by the end of February.

Cancer Research

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much money he allocated for cancer research in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: In 200001, our investment in cancer research was about 190 million. The Department spent 83.8 million, and the health departments of the devolved administrations spent 12.4 million. The Medical Research Council (MRC) has estimated that it spent 58 million on cancer research, and the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) has estimated that the universities spent 26 million of their allocations from HEFCE on cancer research. The other research councils spent a total of 9.9 million.
	Comparable figures for previous years are not available, because, for example, the MRC has improved its methods of capturing data and identifying relevant expenditure. But the Department spent 77.4 million on cancer research in 19992000, 75.6 million in 199899 and 53 million in 199798.

Waiting Times

Virginia Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of patients are waiting over one year for inpatient treatment (a) in West Surrey and (b) in Durham; and what percentage were waiting over one year in June 1997.

John Hutton: The information requested is shown in the table.
	
		Inpatient 12 month waitersJune 1997 and December 2001
		
			  West Surrey(96) County Durham(96) 
		
		
			 June 1997   
			 Number of patient waiting over 12 months for inpatient treatment 1,452 66 
			 Percentage of patients waiting over 12 months for inpatient treatment 8.9 0.5 
			
			 December 2001   
			 Number of patient waiting over 12 months for inpatient treatment 849 7 
			 Percentage of patients waiting over 12 months for inpatient treatment 7 0.1 
		
	
	(96) Health Authority
	Source:
	QF01 quarterly return, Department of Health

Mental Health Services

Virginia Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to improve mental health services for young people.

Jacqui Smith: Our strategy for the development of child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS), initiated in 19992000, is ongoing with the aim of improving the overall quality and accessibility of local services for children and young people with mental health problems. In the three years ending 31 March 2002 we will have invested some 85 million across the national health service and local authorities, with each agency receiving funding to help support the implementation of jointly agreed local CAMHS developments in accordance with national objectives. We intend to build on these gains through implementation of the CAMHS strand of the planned Children's National Service Framework, on which work has recently started. This is expected to produce new standards and service models and will be one of the main drivers of future developments.
	Work is also proceeding on relevant aspects of the NHS plan including improved early intervention services for young people with psychosis and better mental health services for young people in prison.

Nursing Vacancies

Virginia Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which 10 health authorities have (a) the highest and (b) the lowest percentage of nurse vacancies; and what the number of nurses is in each case.

John Hutton: The information requested is shown in the table.
	
		Department of health vacancies survey, March 2001 vacancies in NHS trusts by health authority areas, qualified nurses
		
			 Highest three month vacancies  Three month vacancy rates (Percentage) Three month vacancy (Number) Staff in post 
		
		
			 Bromley HA 10.9 100 800 
			 Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham HA 8.8 630 6,590 
			 Bexley and Greenwich HA 8.2 180 2,040 
			 Barking and Havering HA 8.1 130 1,470 
			 Buckinghamshire HA 7.8 230 2,680 
			 North Cheshire HA 7.8 140 2,680 
			 Southampton and South West Hampshire HA 7.6 220 1,690 
			 Kensington. Chelsea and Westminster HA 7.5 330 2,660 
			 East London and The City HA 7.4 360 4,110 
			 Hillingdon HA 6.8 360 3,960 
			 Lowest 3 month vacancies  60 840 
			 Wolverhampton HA 0.3 10 1,450 
			 Sunderland HA 0.4 10 1,700 
			 Southern Derbyshire HA 0.5 10 2,380 
			 Kingston and Richmond HA 0.5 10 1,400 
			 County Durham and Darlington HA 0.5 10 2,620 
			 Suffolk HA 0.6 10 2,450 
			 South Humber HA 0.6 10 1,340 
			 Cornwall and Isle of Scilly HA 0.6 10 2,250 
			 Morcambe Bay HA 0.7 10 1,840 
			 North Yorkshire HA 0.7 20 3,300 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Three month vacancies are vacancies as at 31 March 2001 which trusts are actively trying to fill, which had lasted for three months or more (whole time equivalents).
	2. Three month vacancy rates are three month vacancies expressed as a percentage of three month vacancies plus staff in post from the September 2000 workforce censuses (whole time equivalent).
	3. HA Figures are based on Trusts, and do not necessarily reflect the geographical provision of healthcare.
	4. Staff in post figures quoted cannot be used to calculate the vacancy rates.
	5. Percentages rounded to one decimal place.
	6. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.
	Source: Department of Health Vacancies Survey 2001

East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will publish (a) the action plan for East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust and (b) revisions to it; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what plans he has for the East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust.

Jacqui Smith: Additional work on the performance improvement plan submitted by East and North Hertfordshire National Health Service to the Eastern Regional Office is in progress. A further assessment of the trust's performance will be made in April and will include feedback from the forthcoming Commission for Health Improvement visit to the trust.

Liver Disease

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what was the incidence of chronic liver disease (a) in total, (b) for men and (c) for women, in residents of each health authority in England and Wales in (i) 1996 and (ii) for the most recent available year; and how far local health authority rates deviate from the national average.

Hazel Blears: The incidence of chronic liver disease in England in 199697 and in 200001 (the last year for which figures are available) was as follows:
	
		Number of cases per 100,000 population
		
			  199697 200001 
		
		
			 Men 3 3 
			 Women 6 6 
			 Total 5 5 
		
	
	The tables show detailed information about the incidence of chronic liver disease among men and women in each English health authority for these two years. Information about the incidence of the disease and the deviation from the national average is expressed in terms of the number of cases per 100,000 population in each health authority.
	
		Admissions, rate per 100,000 population and deviation from national average for chronic liver disease by health authority of residence and genderNHS Hospitals, England 200001
		
			  Admissions Population  
			  Health Authority  Male  Female Not known/ not specified  Total  Male  Female  Total 
		
		
			 QA2 Hillingdon 1 4 0 5 127,271 128,429 255,700 
			 QA3 Kensington, Chelsea and Westminster 8 6 0 14 221,268 213,662 434,930 
			 QA4 Enfield and Haringey 6 13 0 19 248,121 246,435 494,556 
			 QA5 Redbridge and Waltham Forest 10 15 0 25 224,519 227,873 452,392 
			 QA6 Bedfordshire 9 9 0 18 282,220 283,528 565,748 
			 QA7 Berkshire 9 17 0 26 403,506 399,272 802,778 
			 QA8 Buckinghamshire 9 13 0 22 345,303 347,588 692,891 
			 QAA Bexley and Greenwich 4 16 0 20 215,507 223,035 438,542 
			 QAC Bromley 2 7 0 9 147,820 154,616 302,436 
			 QAD Croydon 4 4 0 8 168,681 171,194 339,875 
			 QAE East Kent 6 18 0 24 298,494 316,082 614,576 
			 QAF West Kent 13 27 0 40 485,598 497,858 983,456 
			 QAG Kingston and Richmond 4 6 0 10 172,580 174,490 347,070 
			 QAH Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham 10 21 0 31 376,727 383,778 760,505 
			 QAJ Merton, Sutton and Wandsworth 6 8 0 14 316,416 323,290 639,706 
			 QAK East Surrey 0 8 0 8 210,221 219,401 429,622 
			 QAL West Surrey 9 14 0 23 321,648 329,377 651,025 
			 QAM East Sussex, Brighton and Hove 18 34 0 52 363,545 395,166 758,711 
			 QAN West Sussex 3 20 0 23 367,796 395,894 763,690 
			 QAP Barking and Havering 1 7 0 8 190,201 196,645 386,846 
			 QAQ Barnet 2 7 0 9 173,142 172,350 345,492 
			 QAR Brent and Harrow 2 7 0 9 238,184 231,614 469,798 
			 QAT Camden and Islington 10 9 0 19 190,438 190,607 381,045 
			 QAV Ealing, Hammersmith and Hounslow 21 24 0 45 349,712 340,942 690,654 
			 QAW East London and The City 11 17 0 28 321,535 313,983 635,518 
			 QAX North Essex 7 23 0 30 448,914 464,419 913,333 
			 QAY South Essex 6 23 0 29 351,582 364,047 715,629 
			 QC1 South Lancashire 10 16 0 26 154,731 159,631 314,362 
			 QC2 Liverpool 10 8 0 18 224,379 232,959 457,338 
			 QC3 Manchester 11 10 0 21 218,398 221,151 439,549 
			 QC4 Morecambe Bay 1 15 0 16 152,766 159,503 312,269 
			 QC5 St. Helens and Knowsley 7 20 0 27 163,037 169,039 332,076 
			 QC6 Salford and Trafford 10 16 0 26 220,746 223,589 444,335 
			 QC7 Sefton 9 12 0 21 137,702 148,797 286,499 
			 QC8 Stockport 2 4 0 6 140,950 150,152 291,102 
			 QC9 West Pennine 16 11 0 27 232,091 238,445 470,536 
			 QCC Northamptonshire 7 11 2 20 310,462 315,433 625,895 
			 QCE Oxfordshire 9 7 0 16 315,662 316,451 632,113 
			 QCF Suffolk 12 34 0 46 335,113 344,802 679,915 
			 QCG Barnsley 8 9 0 17 112,321 115,757 228,078 
			 QCH North Derbyshire 13 12 0 25 183,974 187,857 371,831 
			 QCJ South Derbyshire 21 60 0 81 285,522 287,327 572,849 
			 QCK Doncaster 7 6 0 13 143,407 146,737 290,144 
			 QCL Leicestershire 8 18 1 27 467,726 470,967 938,693 
			 QCM Lincolnshire 11 12 0 23 310,014 324,334 634,348 
			 QCN North Nottinghamshire 7 22 0 29 194,776 197,287 392,063 
			 QCP Nottingham 20 28 0 48 315,416 323,731 639,147 
			 QCQ Rotherham 5 19 0 24 125,661 127,546 253,207 
			 QCR Sheffield 10 14 0 24 264,894 265,209 530,103 
			 QCT Bury and Rochdale 7 12 0 19 194,980 198,786 393,766 
			 QCV North Cheshire 5 12 0 17 154,344 157,305 311,649 
			 QCW South Cheshire 13 12 1 26 331,426 341,236 672,662 
			 QCX East Lancashire 9 16 0 25 251,682 256,394 508,076 
			 QCY North West Lancashire 8 14 0 22 230,328 238,606 468,934 
			 QD1 North and Mid Hampshire 2 10 0 12 278,627 283,667 562,294 
			 QD2 Portsmouth and South East Hampshire 3 10 0 13 269,283 276,748 546,031 
			 QD3 Southampton and South West Hampshire 4 12 0 16 272,940 275,273 548,213 
			 QD4 Isle of Wight 5 6 0 11 63,004 66,444 129,448 
			 QD5 Somerset 8 17 0 25 241,728 254,566 496,294 
			 QD6 South and West Devon 11 23 0 34 289,186 308,338 597,524 
			 QD7 Wiltshire 13 22 0 35 303,514 309,973 613,487 
			 QD8 Avon 32 28 0 60 504,509 510,975 1,015,484 
			 QD9 Birmingham 15 21 1 37 500,013 510,414 1,010,427 
			 QDA Wigan and Bolton 17 27 0 44 287,498 292,063 579,561 
			 QDC Wirral 8 18 0 26 157,543 169,925 327,468 
			 QDD Bradford 2 19 0 21 240,071 246,002 486,073 
			 QDE County Durham 9 24 0 33 298,232 308,451 606,683 
			 QDF East Riding 13 40 0 53 283,271 290,005 573,276 
			 QDG Gateshead and South Tyneside 12 15 0 27 171,082 178,485 349,567 
			 QDH Leeds 7 11 0 18 360,292 365,842 726,134 
			 QDJ Newcastle and North Tyneside 9 23 0 32 226,886 237,665 464,551 
			 QDK North Cumbria 4 14 0 18 156,631 160,218 316,849 
			 QDL South Humber 6 10 0 16 151,391 156,318 307,709 
			 QDM Northumberland 6 15 0 21 152,433 157,934 310,367 
			 QDN Sunderland 8 21 0 29 141,459 148,026 289,485 
			 QDP Tees 3 15 0 18 273,255 283,438 556,693 
			 QDQ Wakefield 0 5 0 5 158,896 161,486 320,382 
			 QDR North Yorkshire 18 36 0 54 370,009 383,937 753,946 
			 QDT Calderdale and Kirklees 4 13 0 17 290,182 298,681 588,863 
			 QDV Cornwall and Isles of Scilly 10 19 0 29 243,126 256,257 499,383 
			 QDW Dorset 8 16 0 24 338,697 359,633 698,330 
			 QDX North and East Devon 7 13 0 20 238,631 251,117 489,748 
			 QDY Gloucestershire 6 18 0 24 278,986 285,855 564,841 
			 QEA Coventry 3 11 0 14 149,539 152,330 301,869 
			 QEC Dudley 6 17 0 23 155,363 156,687 312,050 
			 QED Herefordshire 1 9 0 10 83,098 86,215 169,313 
			 QEE Sandwell 5 10 0 15 141,936 146,500 288,436 
			 QEF Shropshire 3 13 0 16 216,949 218,963 435,912 
			 QEG Solihull 1 5 0 6 100,322 104,507 204,829 
			 QEH North Staffordshire 7 16 0 23 232,411 235,638 468,049 
			 QEJ South Staffordshire 5 17 1 23 295,600 296,062 591,662 
			 QEK Walsall 2 15 0 17 129,553 131,346 260,899 
			 QEL Warwickshire 2 23 0 25 252,585 257,374 509,959 
			 QEM Wolverhampton 4 3 0 7 118,707 121,804 240,511 
			 QEN Worcestershire 9 13 0 22 267,120 274,325 541,445 
			 QEP East and North Hertfordshire 5 21 0 26 251,538 255,550 507,088 
			 QEQ West Hertfordshire 1 8 0 9 269,189 274,551 543,740 
			 QER Cambridge 12 25 0 37 363,340 366,843 730,183 
			 QET Norfolk 12 30 0 42 394,940 409,030 803,970 
			 Total 775 1,564 6 2,345 24,697,022 25,300,067 49,997,089 
		
	
	
		Admissions, rate per 100,000 population and deviation from national average for chronic liver disease by health authority of residence and genderNHS Hospitals, England 200001
		
			   Rate per 100,000 population  Deviation from national average  
			 Health Authority Male Female Total Male Female Total 
		
		
			 QA2 Hillingdon 1 3 2 -2 -3 -3 
			 QA3 Kensington, Chelsea and Westminster 4 3 3 0 -3 -1 
			 QA4 Enfield and Haringey 2 5 4 -1 -1 -1 
			 QA5 Redbridge and Waltham Forest 4 7 6 1 0 1 
			 QA6 Bedfordshire 3 3 3 0 -3 -2 
			 QA7 Berkshire 2 4 3 -1 -2 -1 
			 QA8 Buckinghamshire 3 4 3 -1 -2 -2 
			 QAA Bexley and Greenwich 2 7 5 -1 1 0 
			 QAC Bromley 1 5 3 -2 -2 -2 
			 QAD Croydon 2 2 2 -1 -4 -2 
			 QAE East Kent 2 6 4 -1 0 -1 
			 QAF West Kent 3 5 4 0 -1 -1 
			 QAG Kingston and Richmond 2 3 3 -1 -3 -2 
			 QAH Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham 3 5 4 0 -1 -1 
			 QAJ Merton, Sutton and Wandsworth 2 2 2 -1 -4 -3 
			 QAK East Surrey 0 4 2 -3 -3 -3 
			 QAL West Surrey 3 4 4 0 -2 -1 
			 QAM East Sussex, Brighton and Hove 5 9 7 2 2 2 
			 QAN West Sussex 1 5 3 -2 -1 -2 
			 QAP Barking and Havering 1 4 2 -3 -3 -3 
			 QAQ Barnet 1 4 3 -2 -2 -2 
			 QAR Brent and Harrow 1 3 2 -2 -3 -3 
			 QAT Camden and Islington 5 5 5 2 -1 0 
			 QAV Ealing, Hammersmith and Hounslow 6 7 7 3 1 2 
			 QAW East London and The City 3 5 4 0 -1 0 
			 QAX North Essex 2 5 3 -2 -1 -1 
			 QAY South Essex 2 6 4 -1 0 -1 
			 QC1 South Lancashire 6 10 8 3 4 4 
			 QC2 Liverpool 4 3 4 1 -3 -1 
			 QC3 Manchester 5 5 5 2 -2 0 
			 QC4 Morecambe Bay 1 9 5 -2 3 0 
			 QC5 St. Helens and Knowsley 4 12 8 1 6 3 
			 QC6 Salford and Trafford 5 7 6 1 1 1 
			 QC7 Sefton 7 8 7 3 2 3 
			 QC8 Stockport 1 3 2 -2 -4 -3 
			 QC9 West Pennine 7 5 6 4 -2 1 
			 QCC Northamptonshire 2 3 3 -1 -3 -1 
			 QCE Oxfordshire 3 2 3 0 -4 -2 
			 QCF Suffolk 4 10 7 0 4 2 
			 QCG Barnsley 7 8 7 4 2 3 
			 QCH North Derbyshire 7 6 7 4 0 2 
			 QCJ South Derbyshire 7 21 14 4 15 9 
			 QCK Doncaster 5 4 4 2 -2 0 
			 QCL Leicestershire 2 4 3 -1 -2 -2 
			 QCM Lincolnshire 4 4 4 0 -2 -1 
			 QCN North Nottinghamshire 4 11 7 0 5 3 
			 QCP Nottingham 6 9 8 3 2 3 
			 QCQ Rotherham 4 15 9 1 9 5 
			 QCR Sheffield 4 5 5 1 -1 0 
			 QCT Bury and Rochdale 4 6 5 0 0 0 
			 QCV North Cheshire 3 8 5 0 1 1 
			 QCW South Cheshire 4 4 4 1 -3 -1 
			 QCX East Lancashire 4 6 5 0 0 0 
			 QCY North West Lancashire 3 6 5 0 0 0 
			 QD1 North and Mid Hampshire 1 4 2 -2 -3 -3 
			 QD2 Portsmouth and South East Hampshire 1 4 2 -2 -3 -2 
			 QD3 Southampton and South West Hampshire 1 4 3 -2 -2 -2 
			 QD4 Isle of Wight 8 9 8 5 3 4 
			 QD5 Somerset 3 7 5 0 0 0 
			 QD6 South and West Devon 4 7 6 1 1 1 
			 QD7 Wiltshire 4 7 6 1 1 1 
			 QD8 Avon 6 5 6 3 -1 1 
			 QD9 Birmingham 3 4 4 0 -2 -1 
			 QDA Wigan and Bolton 6 9 8 3 3 3 
			 QDC Wirral 5 11 8 2 4 3 
			 QDD Bradford 1 8 4 -2 2 0 
			 QDE County Durham 3 8 5 0 2 1 
			 QDF East Riding 5 14 9 1 8 5 
			 QDG Gateshead and South Tyneside 7 8 8 4 2 3 
			 QDH Leeds 2 3 2 -1 -3 -2 
			 QDJ Newcastle and North Tyneside 4 10 7 1 3 2 
			 QDK North Cumbria 3 9 6 -1 3 1 
			 QDL South Humber 4 6 5 1 0 1 
			 QDM Northumberland 4 9 7 1 3 2 
			 QDN Sunderland 6 14 10 3 8 5 
			 QDP Tees 1 5 3 -2 -1 -1 
			 QDQ Wakefield 0 3 2 -3 -3 -3 
			 QDR North Yorkshire 5 9 7 2 3 2 
			 QDT Calderdale and Kirklees 1 4 3 -2 -2 -2 
			 QDV Cornwall and Isles of Scilly 4 7 6 1 1 1 
			 QDW Dorset 2 4 3 -1 -2 -1 
			 QDX North and East Devon 3 5 4 0 -1 -1 
			 QDY Gloucestershire 2 6 4 -1 0 0 
			 QEA Coventry 2 7 5 -1 1 0 
			 QEC Dudley 4 11 7 1 5 3 
			 QED Herefordshire 1 10 6 -2 4 1 
			 QEE Sandwell 4 7 5 0 1 1 
			 QEF Shropshire 1 6 4 -2 0 -1 
			 QEG Solihull 1 5 3 -2 -1 -2 
			 QEH North Staffordshire 3 7 5 0 1 0 
			 QEJ South Staffordshire 2 6 4 -1 0 -1 
			 QEK Walsall 2 11 7 -2 5 2 
			 QEL Warwickshire 1 9 5 -2 3 0 
			 QEM Wolverhampton 3 2 3 0 -4 -2 
			 QEN Worcestershire 3 5 4 0 -1 -1 
			 QEP East and North Hertfordshire 2 8 5 -1 2 0 
			 QEQ West Hertfordshire 0 3 2 -3 -3 -3 
			 QER Cambridge 3 7 5 0 1 0 
			 QET Norfolk 3 7 5 0 1 1 
			  
			 Total 3 6 5 0 0 0 
		
	
	Notes:
	ICD-10 (diagnosis) codes used were: K70.4, K71.1, K71.3, K71.5, K72.1, K73, K74.3, K76.1
	Please note that these figures are for admissions to hospital, and not incidence rates.
	Figures in this table have not yet been adjusted for shortfalls in data.
	Source:
	Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Department of Health

Out-Patient Waiting Facilities

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance his Department gives to hospitals about suitable out-patient waiting facilities.

John Hutton: Current information on out-patient waiting facilities is contained within the following guidance for those involved in the briefing and design of new or refurbished healthcare facilities. Information sources comprise:
	Health Building Note 12 Out-patients Departments ISBN 0113212666, Department of Health and Welsh Office;
	Design Briefing System notebook DBS 12 (for project teams to record their decisions) Out-patients Departments (issued with the above Health Building Note);
	Supplement 1: Genito-urinary medicine clinic ISBN 0113213085, Department of Health, Welsh Office and Department of Health and Social Security (Northern Ireland);
	Supplement 2: Oral surgery, orthodontics, restorative dentistry ISBN 0113214057, NHS Estates;
	Supplement 3: ENT and audiology clinics; hearing aid centre ISBN 0113217455, NHS Estates;
	Supplement 4: Ophthalmology ISBN 0113222459, NHS Estates.
	All are available through The Stationery Office Ltd. and agents. Electronic copies are distributed free to the national health service.

Medical Students

David Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research he has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated into the relationship between student debt and recruitment of medical students.

John Hutton: The Department has not commissioned any research into the relationship between student debt and recruitment of medical students. It has however funded a study of trends in applications to medical school. The study report will review educational and population statistics from 1996 to 2000, and current literature examining the issue of medical student debt.
	The Department is currently discussing with the Higher Education Funding Council for England the possibility of jointly commissioning research evaluating the expansion of medical schools, which may also include examination of the issue of student debt. The Department is aware of the British Medical Association Medical Students Committee's surveys of medical students' finances.
	During the first four years of their training, undergraduate medical students are supported under the Department for Education and Skills' student support regulations. The Department of Health has introduced special support arrangements for medical and dental students in recognition of the longer length of medical and dental training programmes, and the limited opportunities that such students have to supplement their income due to their heavier study commitments. At the same time the issue of medical student debt needs to be considered against the background that doctors, on qualification, have a higher earning potential than most other professions.

Medical Students

David Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proposals he has to amend the arrangements for financial support for medical students.

John Hutton: The Department currently has no plans to amend the support arrangements for medical students. However, we take a close interest in the effective operation of student support arrangements to ensure that they continue to support our plans to deliver the increased number of staff the service needs.
	On 3 October 2001, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Department for Education and Skills announced plans for a review of student support arrangements. The Department of Health will be working with DfES to ensure that the needs of health professional students are taken fully into account in the design of any new arrangements. They will consider carefully what implications the changes have for the support which the national health service provides directly through the NHS bursary scheme.

Medical Students

David Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what public funding is available to medical students who are training to become doctors.

John Hutton: In recognition of the longer length of medical and dental degree courses and the need to guarantee the future supply of staff, special arrangements have been introduced for undergraduate medical and dental students. English domiciled pre-registration medical and dental students who joined their courses from 1 September 1998 onwards will qualify for NHS bursaries in their fifth and any subsequent years of study.
	NHS bursaries are also available to English domiciled students undertaking the new four-year graduate entry medical courses introduced following the recommendations of the Third Report of the Medical Workforce Standing Advisory Committee in December 1997. These students qualify for NHS-funded support in years 24 of the course.
	NHS funded students (including medical and dental students) on degree level courses receive their support in the form of a means tested bursary supplemented by reduced rate, repayable, student loans. All NHS-funded students have their liability for a tuition fee contribution (currently 1,075) met in full on their behalf and without means testing. Additional allowances are available to take account of the additional weeks that health professional students are required to attend their course, and also for older students, single parents and others with dependants.
	During the first four years of undergraduate medical and dental courses, and the first year of the four-year graduate entry programme, students are supported under the Department for Education and Skills' student support regulations.

Public Bodies

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the instances in which his Department, agencies and non-departmental public bodies failed to pay valid invoices within 30 days or after the agreed credit period in the financial year 200001.

Hazel Blears: The number of invoices not paid within 30 days or after the agreed credit period in the 200001 financial year is shown in the table.
	
		
			   Paid within 30 days/credit period Paid late  
			  Number % Number % Total 
		
		
			 Department of Health 324,566 96.08 13,233 3.92 337,799 
			 Agencies 19,512 94.2 1,212 5.8 20,724 
			 NDPB's 74,023 74.96 24,722 25.04 98,745

Smallpox

Ian Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer of 10 December 2001, Official Report, column 715W, on smallpox, what contracts he has entered into in the last six months for the supply of anti-smallpox drugs.

John Hutton: Anti-viral drugs have been shown in laboratory studies to be effective in treating infections caused by viruses similar to smallpox. However, in practice, patients on anti-virus therapy require intensive monitoring and additional treatment to minimise potentially severe side-effects and need to be in hospital. Anti- viral drugs would therefore, be difficult to administer on a large scale. Because of this, no contracts have been entered into in the last six months for the supply of these anti-smallpox drugs.
	Vaccination is effective in preventing the disease. The Department has a strategic stock of vaccine for use in an outbreak. Information about the size and location of these stocks is not being put in the public domain, as this is information that might be of use to terrorists.

Counter Fraud Service

Angela Watkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients have been convicted for fraudulent claims for free prescriptions since the Counter Fraud Service was introduced 18 months ago.

Hazel Blears: Following the creation of the national health service Counter Fraud Service, the value of fraudulent patient evasion of NHS prescription charges has been reduced from 1998 levels by 41 per cent., equivalent to 48 million.
	Following the implementation of the penalty charges regime in August 2001, over 23,000 charge notices have been issued to patients in respect of non-payment of prescription charges and as a result 236,000 has been returned to NHS funds. The use of penalty charges is a proportionate response in the majority of these cases.
	Criminal sanctions are considered where offences are of a serious or repetitive nature and one patient has been prosecuted.

Emergency Care

John Cummings: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what cash allocations have been made under the reforming emergency care accident and emergency nurse allocation for 200102 to each acute NHS trust in the northern Region; upon what basis the allocations have been made; and which trusts are involved in PFI programmes.

Hazel Blears: Cash allocations to national health service acute trusts in the Department's northern and Yorkshire region under the reforming emergency care accident and emergency nurse allocation for 200102 are detailed in the table. All trusts received funding for a minimum of two additional nurse posts for each accident and emergency department. The table also indicates those trusts that are involved in PFI programmes.
	
		
			 NHS trust Allocation () Additional nurse posts PFI 
		
		
			 Airedale NHS Trust 17,942 2 Yes 
			 Bradford Hospitals NHS Trust 17,942 2 Yes 
			 Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Trust 35,883 4 Yes 
			 City Hospitals Sunderland NHS Trust 17,942 2 No 
			 Dewsbury Health Care NHS Trust 17,942 2 No 
			 Gateshead Health NHS Trust 17,942 2 No 
			 Harrogate Health Care NHS Trust 17,942 2 No 
			 Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust 17,942 2 Yes 
			 Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust 143,534 8 Yes 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Trust 17,942 2 Yes 
			 North Cumbria Acute NHS Trust 35,883 4 Yes 
			 North Durham Health Care NHS Trust 143,534 8 Yes 
			 North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Trust 35,883 4 No 
			 Northallerton Health Services NHS Trust 17,942 2 Yes 
			 Northumbria Healthcare NHS Trust 35,883 4 Yes 
			 Pinderfields and Pontefract NHS Trust 17,942 2 Yes 
			 Scarborough and North East Yorkshire Health Care NHS Trust 17,942 2 No 
			 South Durham Health Care NHS Trust 35,883 4 Yes 
			 South Tees Acute Hospitals NHS Trust 17,942 2 Yes 
			 South Tyneside Health Care NHS Trust 17,942 2 No 
			 York Health Services NHS Trust 17,942 2 No

Operation Cancellations

Jeff Ennis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many operations, broken down into category of operation, have been cancelled in NHS hospitals in the last 12 months.

John Hutton: Data on the number of cancelled operations are not collected by the type of operation.
	The latest released figures are for Quarter 2 200102. Copies of quarterly statistics on cancelled operations by health authority are available in the Library. The publication gives the number of operations cancelled (for non-medical reasons) on the day patients are due to arrive or after arrival in hospital or on the day of the operation.

Care Homes

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to encourage providers of residential care for the elderly to connect up their homes to the internet.

Jacqui Smith: The national standards for care homes for older people require care homes to give residents the opportunity to exercise choice in relation to leisure and social activities and cultural interests. They also require care homes to record residents' interests and give them the opportunity for stimulation through leisure and recreational activities, in and outside the care home, which suit their needs, preferences and capacities, with particular consideration for people with cognitive or sensory impairments and those with physical or learning disabilities. This could include access to the internet. However, it is for individual care home owners to decide whether they wish their care home to be linked to the internet taking into account the individual circumstances of their business and the needs and capacities of the residents.

Financial Allocation

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what financial allocation has been made to the Merton, Sutton and Wandsworth health authority in each of the last 10 years.

John Hutton: Merton, Sutton and Wandsworth health authority was established in its current form on 1 April 1996.
	The table shows the financial allocation that the health authority has received since its establishment.
	
		Revenue allocations to Merton, Sutton and Wandsworth health authority since 199697 -- 000
		
			 Period Total allocation 
		
		
			 199697 293,778 
			 199798 309,318 
			 199899 322,343 
			 19992000 422,995 
			 200001 455,914 
			 200102 498,646 
			 200203 563,125 
		
	
	Note:
	Allocations for 19992000 onwards are not comparable with those for 199697 to 199899 which cover hospital and community health services (HCHS) only. 19992000 was the first year of unified allocations which cover HCHS, prescribing and discretionary general medical services.

Bed Occupancy

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the highest level of occupancy of beds on a single day was in 200001 in each NHS trust in respect of acute mental health wards in London.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 11 February, 2002
	Occupancy levels are not collected on a daily basis for acute mental health wards.

Eating Disorders

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he has adjusted the 19992000 figures on hospital admissions in respect of eating disorders.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 11 February, 2002
	There were 2,030 finished consultant episodes with a primary diagnosis of eating disorder in 19992000. These figures have now been adjusted for shortfalls in data.

Eating Disorders

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will commission research into the incidence of eating disorders among (a) children and young persons, (b) men and (c) women.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 11 February, 2002
	There are no plans to commission further research into the incidence of eating disorders. However, details of ongoing and recently completed research projects are available on the national research register at www.doh.gov.uk/research/ nrr.htm. The Department has also commissioned a guideline on the management of eating disorders from the National Institute for Clinical Excellence.

Antipsychotic Depot Injections

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects to publish the number of prescription items dispensed in the community in England for antipsychotic depot injections in 2001.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 11 February, 2002
	We expect to publish the data in May 2002.

Cancer (Waiting Times)

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list (a) those NHS trusts and (b) those health authorities which have met the Government's two-week target in respect of out-patient waiting times for suspected cancer patients.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 11 February 2002
	The following tables show the percentage of patients seen within two weeks of urgent referral by their general practitioner by national health service trusts and health authorities for the period July to September 2001.
	
		Cancer two week out-patient waiting time standard. Percentage of patients seen within two weeks of urgent referral by their general practitioner where the referral was received within 24 hours of the decision to refer
		
			 NHS trust  Percentage seen Qtr 2, 200102 
		
		
			 Addenbrooke's 90.4 
			 Aintree Hospitals 98.1 
			 Airedale 100.0 
			 Ashford and St. Peters' Hospitals 77.6 
			 Barking, Havering and Redbridge Hospitals 78.9 
			 Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals 97.6 
			 Barnsley District General Hospital 94.2 
			 Barts and the London 94.5 
			 Basildon and Thurrock General Hospitals 100.0 
			 Bedford Hospital 55.5 
			 Birmingham Heartlands and Solihull Hospitals 61.0 
			 Birmingham Women's Healthcare 95.5 
			 Blackburn Hyndburn and Ribble Valley Health Care 99.5 
			 Blackpool Wyre and Fylde Community Health Services 100.0 
			 Blackpool Victoria Hospital 99.7 
			 Bolton Hospitals 97.8 
			 Bradford Hospitals 96.1 
			 Brighton Healthcare 80.6 
			 Bromley Hospitals 100.0 
			 Burnley Healthcare 100.0 
			 Burton Hospitals 92.0 
			 Bury Healthcare 99.0 
			 Calderdale and Huddersfield 97.1 
			 Cardiothoracic Centre Liverpool 100.0 
			 Central Manchester and Manchester Children's University Hospitals 85.0 
			 Chelsea and Westminster Healthcare 97.1 
			 Chesterfield and North Derbyshire Royal Hospital 74.0 
			 Chorley and South Ribble 100.0 
			 Christie Hospital 100.0 
			 City Hospitals 99.7 
			 City Hospitals Sunderland 67.0 
			 Countess of Chester Hospital 95.0 
			 Dartford and Gravesham 86.1 
			 Dewsbury Healthcare 97.8 
			 Doncaster and Bassetlaw Hospitals 99.1 
			 Dudley Group of Hospitals 94.4 
			 Ealing Hospital 98.7 
			 East and North Hertfordshire 77.4 
			 East Cheshire 98.9 
			 East Gloucestershire 99.8 
			 East Kent Hospitals 86.1 
			 East Somerset 72.3 
			 Eastbourne Hospitals 79.7 
			 Epsom and St. Helier 95.9 
			 Essex Rivers Healthcare 97.9 
			 Frimley Park Hospital 99.2 
			 Gateshead Health 98.5 
			 George Eliot Hospital 99.2 
			 Gloucestershire Royal 99.8 
			 Good Hope Hospital 97.8 
			 Guy's and St. Thomas' Hospital 89.1 
			 Hammersmith Hospitals 89.7 
			 Harrogate Health Care 100.0 
			 Hastings and Rother 58.6 
			 Heatherwood and Wexham Park Hospitals 98.7 
			 Hereford Hospitals 95.5 
			 Hillingdon Hospital 93.3 
			 Hinchingbrooke Health Care 99.5 
			 Homerton Hospital 90.8 
			 Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals 98.8 
			 Ipswich Hospital 76.5 
			 Isle of Wight Healthcare 95.1 
			 James Paget Healthcare 95.7 
			 Kettering General Hospital 78.6 
			 King's College Hospital 98.2 
			 King's Lynn and Wisbech Hospitals 90.0 
			 Kingston Hospital 96.4 
			 Leeds Teaching Hospitals 95.3 
			 Leicestershire and Rutland Healthcare 95.8 
			 Lewisham Hospital 99.2 
			 Liverpool Women's Hospital 92.7 
			 Luton and Dunstable Hospital 94.9 
			 Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells 98.2 
			 Mayday Healthcare 97.2 
			 Medway 80.4 
			 Mid-Cheshire Hospitals 96.7 
			 Mid-Essex Hospital Services 98.8 
			 Mid-Staffordshire General Hospitals 95.0 
			 Mid-Sussex 93.2 
			 Milton Keynes General 98.4 
			 Morecambe Bay Hospitals 87.4 
			 Newham Healthcare 100.0 
			 Norfolk and Norwich Healthcare 94.8 
			 North Bristol 85.0 
			 North Cheshire Hospital 90.0 
			 North Cumbria Acute 85.3 
			 North Durham Health Care 89.8 
			 North Hampshire Hospitals 86.3 
			 North Manchester Healthcare 90.6 
			 North Middlesex Hospital 100.0 
			 North Staffordshire Hospital 85.9 
			 North Tees and Hartlepool 88.2 
			 North West London Hospitals 95.5 
			 Northallerton Health Services 96.1 
			 Northampton General Hospital 78.3 
			 Northern Devon Healthcare 100.0 
			 Northern Lincolnshire and Goole Hospitals 98.6 
			 Northumbria Healthcare 76.8 
			 Nottingham City Hospital 99.7 
			 Oldham 96.4 
			 Papworth Hospital 100.0 
			 Peterborough Hospitals 100.0 
			 Pinderfields and Pontefract Hospitals 65.5 
			 Plymouth Hospitals 97.0 
			 Poole Hospital 99.6 
			 Portsmouth Hospitals 87.4 
			 Preston Acute Hospitals 100.0 
			 Princess Alexandra Hospital 97.3 
			 Princess Royal Hospital 94.6 
			 Queen Elizabeth Hospital 99.0 
			 Queen Mary's Sidcup 96.8 
			 Queen Victoria Hospital 97.1 
			 Queens Medical Centre Nottingham University Hospital 93.0 
			 Rochdale Healthcare 93.0 
			 Rotherham General Hospitals 99.0 
			 Royal Berkshire and Battle Hospital 76.0 
			 Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospitals 99.5 
			 Royal Brompton and Harefield 83.3 
			 Royal Cornwall Hospital 85.9 
			 Royal Devon and Exeter Healthcare 100.0 
			 Royal Free Hampstead 40.0 
			 Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals 91.3 
			 Royal Liverpool Children's 100.0 
			 Royal Marsden Hospital 100.0 
			 Royal Shrewsbury Hospitals 79.1 
			 Royal Surrey County and St. Luke's Hospitals 100.0 
			 Royal United Hospital Bath 93.7 
			 Royal West Sussex 99.6 
			 Royal Wolverhampton Hospitals 99.8 
			 Salford Royal Hospitals 91.1 
			 Salisbury Health Care 85.6 
			 Sandwell Healthcare 100.0 
			 Scarborough and North East Yorkshire Healthcare 100.0 
			 Severn 100.0 
			 Sheffield Children's Hospital 100.0 
			 Sheffield Teaching Hospitals 98.6 
			 Sherwood Forest Hospitals 93.2 
			 South Buckinghamshire 77.9 
			 South Devon Healthcare 97.0 
			 South Durham Health Care 99.2 
			 South Manchester University Hospitals 93.9 
			 South Tees Acute Hospitals 88.8 
			 South Tyneside Healthcare 90.3 
			 South Warwickshire General Hospitals 86.1 
			 South West London Community 100.0 
			 Southampton University Hospitals 95.9 
			 Southend Hospital 85.5 
			 Southern Derbyshire Acute Hospitals 95.1 
			 Southport and Ormskirk 99.8 
			 St. George's Healthcare 99.5 
			 St. Helens and Knowsley Hospitals 79.5 
			 St. Mary's 100.0 
			 Stockport Health Services 100.0 
			 Stoke Mandeville Hospital 94.8 
			 Surrey and Sussex Healthcare 98.8 
			 Surrey Hampshire Borders 99.0 
			 Swindon and Marlborough 98.4 
			 Tameside and Glossop Acute Services 90.6 
			 Taunton and Somerset 92.5 
			 The Newcastle Upon Tyne Hospitals 98.9 
			 The Oxford Radcliffe Hospital 97.7 
			 Trafford Healthcare 96.8 
			 United Bristol Healthcare 65.2 
			 United Lincolnshire Hospitals 97.9 
			 University College London Hospitals 92.5 
			 University Hospital Birmingham 98.5 
			 University Hospital of Coventry and Warwickshire 74.8 
			 University Hospitals of Leicester 89.1 
			 Walsall Hospitals 99.7 
			 West Dorset General Hospitals 95.3 
			 West Hertfordshire Hospitals 90.5 
			 West Middlesex University Hospital 90.6 
			 West Suffolk Hospitals 75.7 
			 Weston Area Health 95.6 
			 Whipps Cross University Hospital 70.5 
			 Whittington Hospital 80.7 
			 Winchester and Eastleigh Healthcare 93.2 
			 Wirral Hospital 98.6 
			 Worcestershire Acute Hospital 90.9 
			 Worcestershire Community and Mental Health 95.2 
			 Worthing and Southlands Hospitals 73.6 
			 Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh 86.2 
			 York Health Services 95.3 
		
	
	Source:
	DOH form QMCW
	
		Cancer two week out-patient waiting time standard. Percentage of patients seen within two weeks of urgent referral by their general practitioner where the referral was received within 24 hours of the decision to refer
		
			 Health authority Percentage seen Qtr 2, 200102 
		
		
			 Avon 83.4 
			 Barking and Havering 78.9 
			 Barnet, Enfield and Haringey 98.0 
			 Barnsley 94.2 
			 Bedfordshire 79.4 
			 Berkshire 87.6 
			 Bexley, Bromley and Greenwich 98.0 
			 Birmingham 81.6 
			 Bradford 97.4 
			 Brent and Harrow 95.5 
			 Buckinghamshire 88.7 
			 Bury and Rochdale 96.7 
			 Calderdale and Kirklees 97.4 
			 Cambridgeshire 94.5 
			 Camden and Islington 76.4 
			 Cornwall and Isles of Scilly 85.9 
			 County Durham and Darlington 95.4 
			 Coventry 74.8 
			 Croydon 97.2 
			 Doncaster 99.1 
			 Dorset 98.0 
			 Dudley 94.4 
			 Ealing, Hammersmith and Hounslow 93.8 
			 East Kent 86.1 
			 East Lancashire 99.8 
			 East London and City 96.0 
			 East Riding and Hull 98.8 
			 East Surrey 98.8 
			 East Sussex Brighton and Hove 78.2 
			 Gateshead and South Tyneside 96.2 
			 Gloucestershire 99.8 
			 Herefordshire 95.5 
			 Hertfordshire 86.9 
			 Hillingdon 93.3 
			 Isle of Wight, Portsmouth and South East Hampshire 87.9 
			 Kensington, Chelsea and Westminster 99.0 
			 Kingston  Richmond 96.6 
			 Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham 96.0 
			 Leeds 95.3 
			 Leicestershire 89.4 
			 Lincolnshire 97.9 
			 Liverpool 92.8 
			 Manchester 91.4 
			 Merton, Sutton and Wandsworth 98.9 
			 Morecambe Bay 87.4 
			 Newcastle and North Tyneside 98.9 
			 Norfolk 93.8 
			 North and East Devon 100.0 
			 North and Mid Hampshire 90.7 
			 North Cheshire 90.0 
			 North Cumbria 85.3 
			 North Derbyshire 74.0 
			 North Essex 98.1 
			 North Nottinghamshire 93.2 
			 North Staffordshire 85.9 
			 North West Lancashire 99.8 
			 North Yorkshire 97.8 
			 Northamptonshire 78.4 
			 Northumberland 76.8 
			 Nottingham 95.9 
			 Oxfordshire 97.7 
			 Redbridge and Waltham Forest 70.5 
			 Rotherham 99.0 
			 Salford and Trafford 93.1 
			 Sandwell 100.0 
			 Sefton 98.8 
			 Sheffield 98.6 
			 Shropshire 87.2 
			 Somerset 85.0 
			 South and West Devon 97.0 
			 South Cheshire 96.9 
			 South Essex 91.5 
			 South Humber 98.6 
			 South Lancashire 100.0 
			 South Staffordshire 93.1 
			 Southampton and SW Hampshire 95.9 
			 Southern Derbyshire 95.1 
			 St. Helens and Knowsley 79.5 
			 Stockport 100.0 
			 Suffolk 76.1 
			 Sunderland 67.0 
			 Tees 88.4 
			 Wakefield 65.5 
			 Walsall 99.7 
			 Warwickshire 91.5 
			 West Kent 87.9 
			 West Pennine 93.0 
			 West Surrey 92.0 
			 West Sussex 90.8 
			 Wigan and Bolton 93.3 
			 Wiltshire 91.1 
			 Wirral 98.6 
			 Wolverhampton 99.8 
			 Worcestershire 91.1 
		
	
	Note:
	Health authority performance is based on data from NHS trust providers within their boundaries.
	Source:
	DOH form QMCW

NHS Plan

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made towards providing the additional intermediate care beds announced in the NHS Plan.

Jacqui Smith: The NHS Plan set a target of 5,000 extra national health service intermediate-care beds by March 2004, over the baseline of 19992000.
	A survey undertaken last summer indicates that by the end of this year (200102) we shall have 2,400 extra beds.

Mental Health

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his assessment is of the (a) proportion of those with a diagnosis of severe mental illness who are in employment and (b) trend in the prevalence of psychiatric disorder by employment status.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 12 February, 2002
	Information on the proportion of individuals with a diagnosis of severe mental illness who are in employment, and trends in the prevalence of psychiatric disorder by employment is not collected centrally by the Department.

Mental Health

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on progress in implementation of the National Service Framework for Mental Health.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 12 February, 2002
	The targets set in the mental health National Service Framework (NSF) for April 2001 were all achieved on time. These included 170 assertive outreach teams; almost 500 additional secure beds; over 320 additional 24 hour staffed care beds; access to services 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year for all those with complex mental health problems; investment to improve the physical environments in psychiatric wards; and guidance has been issued to ensure the safety, privacy and dignity of mental health patients.

Speech Therapy

Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many vacancies there are for speech and language therapists in the National Health Service.

John Hutton: The information requested in shown in the table.
	
		Department of health, 2001 three month vacancies speech and language therapists
		
			   England 
		
		
			 Three month vacancy number 200 
			 Three month vacancy rate (percentage) 4.7 
			 Staff in post 4,210 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Three month vacancies are vacancies as at 31 March 2001 which trusts are actively trying to fill, which had lasted for three months or more (whole time equivalents)
	2. Three month vacancy rates are three month vacancies expressed as a percentage of three month vacancies plus staff in post from the September 2000 medical and dental and non-medical workforce censuses (whole time equivalent)
	3. Staff in post is from the September 2001 non-medical workforce census
	4. Numbers are rounded to the nearest ten
	5. England totals include staff from Special Health Authorities
	Source: Department of Health Vacancies Survey, March 2001 and HCHS Non-Medical Workforce Census September 2001

Speech Therapy

Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to make speech and language therapy a statutory service.

John Hutton: Speech and language therapists are a recognised profession, which have been state regulated since 1999. We have no plans for the service to be based in statute.

Treatment Abroad

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assistance is given to parents with the cost of visiting and telephoning their children in hospitals abroad for NHS treatment; if the Government will set up such a new scheme to help parents; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: No children are being sent abroad for national health service treatment under the test bed scheme currently under way in the south east of England. If the NHS chooses to commission care for children overseas at some point in the future we would expect commissioners to ensure that children were accompanied by a parent or carer at the NHS' expense.
	It is rare for children to travel abroad under the E112 scheme which requires prior authorisation from the NHS and the Department. The Department has not in the past paid for travel and non-hospital accommodation costs for the child and accompanying adult, although in practice the NHS has found ways, e.g. through charitable funds, to help in deserving cases. The Department is reviewing this policy as part of its wider review of the working of the E112 system.

Entertainment Costs

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list for 199798 and for each subsequent financial year, including the current year to date, the amount spent by (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) its non-departmental public bodies on (i) food and (ii) alcohol, indicating how much was spent on guests, and how much in respect of (A) Ministers and (B) staff, broken down to show how much was provided directly by his Department and how much reclaimed.

Hazel Blears: The Department, its agencies and non-departmental public bodies classify management and accounting data about spending on food and alcohol in widely different ways. To provide the information requested would involve a disproportionate expense.

Mobile Telephones

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list, for 199798 and for each subsequent financial year, the amount spent (a) in the United Kingdom and (b) abroad by (i) his Department, (ii) its agencies and (iii) its non-departmental public bodies on (1) providing mobile telephone equipment, including handsets and other associated equipment, (2) telephone calls made using such equipment and (3) telephone calls made using privately owned mobile telephones but subsequently reclaimed by (x) Ministers and (y) staff.

Hazel Blears: The information requested is not available centrally.

Failing Hospitals

Evan Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his policy is on allowing private sector managers to run failing hospitals.

John Hutton: Poorly performing national health service organisations that fail to respond to special measures and meet their recovery plan will be put under the control of a new senior management. Franchise bids to run poorly performing NHS trusts will be invited from experienced NHS managers with a good track record for delivery. In future expressions of interest could be invited from elsewhere, and subject to a tender from an approved list.
	The types of non-NHS organisation that might be interested in franchises to run zero rated NHS trusts are likely to include:
	organisations with specific experience and expertise in the health field;
	non-health organisations with relevant management capability, but which would need to bring in staff with health expertise.
	My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced on 11 February that four of the 12 zero-start rated trusts will be subject to franchise arrangements. Invitations for franchise will be invited from existing NHS senior managers with a proven track record of delivery.

Social Services

George Stevenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the level of social services SSA was in (a) Stoke-on-Trent, (b) all unitary authorities and (c) on average in England, in each year from 199798.

Jacqui Smith: The social services standard spending assessment figures are set out in the table.
	
		 million 
		
			  Stoke-on-Trent Total unitaries(97) Total England 
		
		
			 199798 38.102 753.385 7,392.117 
			 199899 41.200 1253.952 7,814.651 
			 19992000 46.787 1331.024 8,268.000 
			 200001 49.080 1399.805 8,693.400 
			 200102 50.460 1435.596 8,955.400 
			 200203 51.660 1475.623 9,230.994 
		
	
	(97) A number of new unitary authorities was created in 199899. Figures for unitaries are not, therefore, on a consistent and comparable basis.
	The equivalent SSA figures per head of population are as follows:
	
		 per head 
		
			  Stoke-on-Trent Total unitaries(98) Total England 
		
		
			 199798 150 146 151 
			 199899 162 152 159 
			 19992000 184 161 168 
			 200001 195 169 176 
			 200102 201 173 180 
			 200203 207 177 184 
		
	
	(98) A number of new unitary authorities was created in 199899. Figures for unitaries are not, therefore, on a consistent and comparable basis.

Haemophilia

Laura Moffatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if it is his policy to provide recombinant (synthetic) clothing factors for new haemophilia patients and children under 16; and if it applies to the provision of Factor VIIa to patients with inhibitors, who are resistant to Factor VIII and IX.

Yvette Cooper: In 1998 we notified health authorities that from 199899 all children under the age of 16 and new patients with haemophilia A should receive recombinant factor VIII. From April 1999 this policy was extended to recombinant factor IX for patients with haemophilia B. We have not issued any advice to health authorities on the treatment of patients with inhibitors, of which recombinant factor VIIa is one of a range of possible treatments. Guidance on overall management of these patients, including the use of recombinant factor VIIa, has however been issued by the United Kingdom Haemophilia Centre Doctors Organisation. A copy of these guidelines is available in the Library.

NHS Dentistry

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on NHS dental provision in each region of the UK.

Hazel Blears: The total number of dentists working in the national health service in England as at 30 September was 22,437, of whom 18,821 work in the general dental service (GDS) and the personal dental service (PDS). The remainder work in the hospital dental service, the community dental service or are salaried dentists. The total gross expenditure on the GDS and the PDS is about 1,720 million a year.
	NHS dental provision in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales is a matter for the devolved Administrations.

Hip and Knee Replacements

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost per operation is for (a) hip and (b) knee replacements in each hospital trust.

John Hutton: The information requested has been placed in the Library. The table contains the average unit costs (per operation) for each NHS Trust in England for (a) primary hip replacements, and (b) Primary Knee Replacements where the operation is undertaken as an elective (ie planned) admission.
	The data source is the Reference Costs 2001 Collection, relating to the financial year 200001. These are the most current data available in the public domain.
	Calculation of the costs provided are based on all activity and costs associated with each procedure, regardless of the specialty in which the activity is recorded.

Prescriptions

Evan Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the benefits of the movement of products from prescription control to pharmacy sale; and what impact the change would have on access to treatments.

Hazel Blears: We are committed to empowering patients to make informed health care choices. Widening access to medicines, including moving medicines from prescription only status to availability from a pharmacist where is it safe to do so, can play an important part in this process.
	The benefits of making more medicines available from the pharmacy include the opportunity for people to access treatments speedily, at a time and a place of their choosing that would otherwise only be available having consulted a prescriber.
	The NHS Plan set out a range of proposals for improving access to medicines including developing the role of pharmacists set out in Pharmacy in the Futurea copy of which is in the Library. It outlines a range of changes designed to enable the greater availability of medicines, including independent nurse prescribing, supplementary prescribing and patient group directions. Taken together, these initiatives will have an important impact on improving access to treatments and ensuring our commitment to patient centred care is taken forward.
	Reclassification of medicines can also play an important role in supporting our clinical priority areas, for example in disease prevention and health promotion. It also provides support on more specific health initiatives such as smoking cessation where, a number of nicotine replacement products were made more widely available in May 2001.

Ministerial Boxes

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health by what means ministerial boxes are conveyed from private offices in his Department to (a) himself and (b) his Ministers; how frequently and at what expense private courier firms are employed for such a task; and which courier firms have been used for such duties.

Hazel Blears: Ministerial boxes originating from this Department are transported to Ministers' homes either by Government car or by a service provided by Royal Mail.

Health and Safety (Computers)

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many employees in his Department who regularly use computers have taken up the provision of a free eye test; and how this service is advertised to (a) current and (b) new staff.

Hazel Blears: The Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992, effective from January 1993, require employers to provide and pay for, upon request from an employee, an eye and eyesight test.
	The number of eyesight tests carried out under the Display Screen Equipment Regulation (1992) for staff working for the Department and its agencies is shown in the table.
	
		
			 Year Number of tests 
		
		
			 1998 249 
			 1999 410 
			 2000 462 
			 2001 495 
		
	
	The Department promotes the eyesight test scheme to all staff through its internal electronic information system and in house publications. New staff are also provided with information about the eye test scheme through health and safety awareness as part of induction training.

Independent Reconfiguration Panel

Peter Viggers: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how the posts of Chairman of the Independent Reconfiguration Panel was (a) advertised and (b) filled;
	(2)  if he will make a statement on the extent to which the Independent Reconfiguration Panel is independent of Government;
	(3)  on what basis the members of the Independent Reconfiguration Panel other than the Chairman were (a) recruited and (b) appointed;
	(4)  what the role of the Independent Reconfiguration Panel is.

Hazel Blears: The Independent Reconfiguration Panel (IRP) will offer authoritative advice to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health on referred proposals for NHS service change. The Panel's draft terms of reference were outlined in the press release announcing the appointment of the Chair, Dr Peter Barrett. These will need to be agreed with the Panel membership before being confirmed. The advice offered will be independent of Government and will be published.
	As a Public Sector Working Group, the Office for the Commissioner of Public Appointments has confirmed that the IRP does not fall within its remit. However, as far as possible, the appointment procedures followed have been in line with Nolan principles. The panel chairman, Dr Barrett, was appointed by the Secretary of State from a shortlist of candidates. The selection of the Panel membership is being undertaken through an open recruitment competition, overseen by an independent assessor. No appointments have yet been made.

Civil Servants

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will provide the (a) percentage and number of rail journeys undertaken on first class tickets, (b) average cost of a first class journey by rail and (c) total cost of rail travel in each of the past four years broken down by grade of civil servant.

Hazel Blears: In 2001, 43,474 rail tickets were purchased from the Department's travel contractor, of which 27,087 (62 per cent.) were for first class travel.
	Information about the average price of a first class ticket is not kept but the average price paid in 2001 for all classes of rail ticket purchased from the Department's travel contractor was 150.
	There is no information about tickets purchased by grade of civil servant but the total cost of rail travel in each of the past three years is as follows:
	
		
			   
		
		
			 1999 3,697,682 
			 2000 4,331,446 
			 2001 4,983,797

Promotional Sick Bags

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many promotional sick bags have been sent out by the Food Standards Agency; and at what cost.

Yvette Cooper: I am advised by the Food Standards Agency that they have sent out a total of 287,378 promotional sick bags to named catering outlets at a cost of 125,322. The approach was extensively piloted as a successful means of promoting the food hygiene campaign.

A and E Patients

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many accident and emergency patients have been received each month over the past five years at the (a) Whittington, (b) North Middlesex and (c) Royal Free hospital.

John Hutton: Data on accident and emergency attendances are not collected on a monthly basis. From 200102, the information is available on a quarterly basis and previous to this on an annual basis.
	Information for the selected national health service trusts is given in the table.
	
		Total accident and emergency attendances, 199798 to 200102 Qtr 3
		
			   National health service trust  
			  Whittington hospital North Middlesex hospital Royal Free Hampstead 
		
		
			 200102(99) 16,003 21,646 14,245 
			 200102(100) 16,550 21,553 14,907 
			 200102(101) 17,136 22,653 15,003 
			 200001 67,883 88,096 58,830 
			 19992000 68,047 84,441 60,445 
			 199899 64,429 81,589 62,239 
			 199798 66,143 80,929 62,717 
		
	
	(99) Quarter 3
	(100) Quarter 2
	(101) Quarter 1
	Source:
	KH09Outpatient and AE attendances
	The information is available on the Department's website www.doh.gov.uk/hospitalactivity.

Housing

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health for each English health authority how many housing units have been (a) disposed of, (b) bought and (c) financed for purchase by specialist staff.

John Hutton: Health authorities do not acquire or dispose of residential housing units for staff. Where staff accommodation is owned, this is through either National Health Service trusts or primary care trusts. The information requested has not been required to be collected in the past, so no records exist.

Artificial Limbs

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much funding has been (a) made available to and (b) spent by the NHS on the provision of silicone cosmesis for artificial limb users since April 2001.

Jacqui Smith: In January 2001, we announced that funding totalling 4 million over three years to provide silicone cosmesis covers to artificial limb users would be made available to the national health service. From April 2001 0.5 million was added to health authorities' baseline allocation, with 1.5 million from 200203 and 2 million from 200304.
	The contract for providing silicone cosmesis covers was awarded in October 2001. The contractor is required to provide the NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency with quarterly contract sales which will include:
	Total sales figures in s
	s spent by each Disablement Service Centre
	what span of product are purchased.
	This information is currently being collated by the NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency.

Artificial Limbs

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much funding will be made available to the NHS by his Department for the provision of silicone cosmesis for artificial limb users in (a) 200203 and (b) 200304.

Jacqui Smith: The Department has made available 1.5 million in 200203 and 2 million in 200304 to the national health service to provide silicone cosmesis covers for artificial limb users.

Apolipoproteins

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to introduce a uniform, standardised test for apolipoproteins.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 8 February 2002
	The measurement of apolipoproteins in the blood may be useful in predicting coronary heart disease. However total cholesterol and high and low density lipoprotein cholesterol levels remain the standard tests in clinical practice. NHS pathology services carrying out routine apolipoprotein testing (rather than or as an additional indicator of coronary heart disease) will need to be assured of its value in patient care, to use a standard technique and to be part of an accredited external quality assurance scheme. Our Pathology Modernisation Programme strongly encourages this approach.

Data Protection Act

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what the policy of the Department is for ensuring responses to requests for information under the Data Protection Act 1998 are completed within 40 days; and what their procedure is to achieve this;
	(2)  what his estimate is of the average cost of processing each information request under the Data Protection Act 1998;
	(3)  what the longest period of time elapsed is between receiving (a) the administration fee and providing the information requested and (b) a request for information and providing the information requested, under the Data Protection Act 1998;
	(4)  how many responses to requests for information under the Data Protection Act 1998 have been completed (a) within 40 days, (b) between 40 and 60 days and (c) over 60 days after receiving the original letter; and how many are still outstanding;
	(5)  what the Department's procedure is for responding to requests for information under the Data Protection Act 1998; if he will place a copy in the Library; and if he will make a statement;
	(6)  how many requests the Department has received under the Data Protection Act 1988 for (a) electronically held information and (b) paper documentation;
	(7)  what percentage of responses to requests for information under the Data Protection Act 1998 the Department has completed (a) within 40 days of receipt of the 10 fee, (b) between 40 and 60 days of and (c) over 60 days after receiving the administration fee;
	(8)  what administration fees are charged by the Department for information requests made under the Data Protection Act 1998;
	(9)  what the period of time elapsed is for the oldest outstanding request for information under the Data Protection Act 1998, since receipt of the (a) original request and (b) administration fee;
	(10)  how many responses to requests for information under the Data Protection Act 1998 the Department has completed (a) within 40 days, (b) between 40 and 60 days and (c) over 60 days after receiving the 10 administration fee;
	(11)  how many responses the Department has completed to requests for information made under the Data Protection Act 1998 for (a) electronically held information and (b) paper documentation.

Hazel Blears: The Department's policy is to respond to requests for information under the Data Protection Act 1998 as quickly and accurately as possible, and in accordance with the data protection principles.
	The Department follows a strict procedure in handling requests for information under the Data Protection Act 1998. Requests are coordinated centrally and monitored. These arrangements are designed to ensure that requests are handled sensitively, and wherever possible responses provided on time.
	The Act provides for anyone seeking information to be given a response within 40 calendar days of receiving adequate proof of identity and an indication of what kind of personal data the Department is likely to hold. The time taken to reply is measured against the date when this information was received, not the date of the original letter. The Department does not currently charge an administration fee.
	The table sets out the numbers of requests received since 1 March 2000, when the Act came into force, with an analysis of performance against the target. Those requesting information do not usually specify the format of information when submitting requests. The analysis shows where responses were based on paper or electronic records, or a mixture of the two.
	
		Requests for access to personal information under the Data Protection Act 1998
		
			   Format Time to complete/ time outstanding  
			   Electronic and paper Electronic Paper Under 40 days 4060 days Over 60 days 
		
		
			 Total requests received 56 30 10 16
			 Total requests completed 47 22 9 16 45 (96%) 2 (4%) 0 
			 Total outstanding 9 8 1 0 8  1 
		
	
	The longest period of time elapsed between receiving a request for information and providing the information requested was 60 days. The period of time elapsed for the oldest outstanding request for information is 68 days (on 12 February 2002).
	The Department does not currently measure the time and effort needed to respond to each information request on an individual basis. These vary considerably in relation to the nature and complexity of requests. No estimate of the average cost is available.
	A copy of the Department's procedure for handling responses to information requests will be deposited in the Library.

Muchal Fold Scans

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health have many NHS trusts charge for a muchal fold scan for mothers over the age of 35 years.

Yvette Cooper: The information requested is not held centrally.

NHS Board Appointments

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will give the number of people from the Warrington, North constituency who in each of the past five years have (a) applied for and (b) been appointed to positions on the board of the (i) North Cheshire health authority, (ii) Walton Centre for Neurology and Neurosurgery NHS trust, (iii) North Cheshire hospitals and Warrington hospital NHS trust, (iv) Mersey Regional Ambulance Service NHS trust, (v) Clatterbridge Centre Oncology NHS trust, (vi) Cardiothoracic Centre, Liverpool NHS trust and (vii) Warrington Community NHS trust;
	(2)  how many people from the Warrington, North constituency have, in each of the past five years, (a) applied for and (b) been appointed to positions on the board of the (i) Ashworth hospital authority SHA, (ii) Christie hospital NHS trust, (iii) Family Health Services Appeal Authority SHA and (iv) National Blood Authority SHA.

Hazel Blears: Information is not available on applications made in the last five years. Details of applications made by people living in Warrington, North since 1 April 2001 and appointments made in the last five years are provided in the table.
	
		Applications for and appointments to national health service bodies by people living in the Warrington, North constituency
		
			  Applications since 1 April 2001 Applications in the last five years 
		
		
			 Ashworth Hospital Authority Special Health Authority 0 2 
			 Cardiothoracic Centre, Liverpool NHS trust 0 0 
			 Clatterbridge Centre Oncology NHS trust 0 0 
			 Christie Hospital NHS trust 0 0 
			 Family Health Services Appeal Authority 0 0 
			 Mersey Regional Ambulance Service NHS trust 0 0 
			 National Blood Authority 0 0 
			 North Cheshire health authority 0 2 
			 North Cheshire hospitals NHS trust 0 1 
			 Walton Centre for Neurology and Neurosurgery NHS trust 0 0 
			 Warrington community NHS trust 0 3 
			 Warrington hospital NHS trust 0 1

MMR

George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the percentage of eligible infants in the South Cheshire health authority receiving the MMR vaccine was in each of the last four years.

Yvette Cooper: The percentage of children in South Cheshire health authority immunised against MMR by their second birthday and fifth birthday is shown in the table.
	
		Percentage of children in South Cheshire health authority immunised against MMR
		
			   By their fifth birthday(102)  
			 At 31 March By their second birthday First dose First and second dose 
		
		
			 1998 92   
			 1999 89   
			 2000 88 90 65 
			 2001 89 90 72 
		
	
	(102) Information about uptake of MMR immunisation at age five was collected for the first time in 19992000
	Source:
	Department of Health, Statistics Division SD2B

TREASURY

Fuel Duties (Northern Ireland)

Christopher Chope: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what volume of (a) petrol and (b) diesel he estimates is imported annually from the Republic of Ireland to Northern Ireland without UK excise duty being paid.

Paul Boateng: Customs estimates of revenue loss in the Northern Ireland oils sector were included in the Tackling Indirect Fraud paper which the Government published as part of the pre-Budget report in November 2001.

Fuel Duties (Northern Ireland)

Christopher Chope: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what volume of heating oil he estimates is sold annually in Northern Ireland for use in the Republic of Ireland.

Paul Boateng: HM Customs and Excise do not have estimates of the volume of heating oil sold annually in Northern Ireland for use in the Republic of Ireland.

Carbon Tax

Robert Key: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what reasons he decided not to implement a carbon tax.

Paul Boateng: The climate change levy (CCL) was introduced in April 2001 following extensive consultation, and in accordance with the recommendations of Lord Marshall's report on Economic Instruments and the Business use of Energy.
	As recommended by Lord Marshall, the Government believe that a downstream tax on energy such as the CCL is the best approach to take to the taxation of energy products, as it allows the Government to balance the need to encourage improvements in energy efficiency with other policy considerations. The extent of fuel poverty in the UK is well established, and the Government do not propose taxing energy use in the domestic sector.

Child Support Agency

Steve Webb: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what activities are carried out by the Inland Revenue with regard to the Child Support Agency; what the costs of these activities are; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: The Child Support Act 1991 permits the Inland Revenue to disclose information to assist the Child Support Agency in tracing non-resident parents. Amendments under the Social Security Administration Act 1992 enabled earnings information to be passed to the Child Support Agency.
	Amendments under the Welfare Reform and Pensions Act 1999 enabled the Inland Revenue to provide the Child Support Agency with information about the earnings or other income of the self employed.
	Under the terms of this legislation the Inland Revenue provides the Child Support Agency with the relevant information on request. The approximate estimated amount involved is 165,000 per annum, for which the Inland Revenue is reimbursed by the Child Support Agency.

10-year Transport Plan

Don Foster: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the total level of public expenditure allocated for the 10-year transport plan was as of (a) the launch of the plan in July 2000, (b) 2 April 2001, (c) 14 January 2002 and (d) 12 February 2002.

Andrew Smith: The totals are as follows:
	(a) At the launch of the plan the total funding envelope over the plan period was 179.7 billion, of which 129.1 billion was assumed to be public money.
	(b) As a result of the 2 April 2001 agreement with Railtrack, the total rose to 181.2 billion, which includes 1.5 billion of advanced grants to Railtrack. The total public element of this is therefore 130.6 billion.
	(c) On 14 January 2002, the total stood at 181.9 billion, which includes the grants to Railtrack as shown, a freight adjustment of 462 million agreed in principle in April 2001, but only quantified in October 2001 following completion of the regulator's freight charges review, and 285 million of 200001 EYF, allocated in the summer and winter supplementaries. Public sector funding accounts for 131.4 billion of this total.
	(d) As of 12 February 2002, the total figure remained 181.9 billion. A detailed breakdown of the total is provided in an updated version of Table A3 from the 10-year plan, copies of which will be placed in the Library.

10-year Transport Plan

Christopher Chope: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 12 February 2002, Official Report, column 243W, on the 10-year transport plan, if the unused rail provision in 200001 was available for use in 200102 under the rules on end of year flexibility.

Andrew Smith: Yes, the unused rail provision from 200001 is available for use this year.

10-year Transport Plan

Christopher Chope: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 12 February 2002, Official Report, column 243W, on the 10-year transport plan, if the Treasury gave permission for the allocation of additional funding to the 10-year transport plan from the unused rail provision in 200001.

Andrew Smith: Yes, Treasury did give permission. The transfer was made through the normal supplementary arrangements.

Gross Domestic Product

Pete Wishart: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will (a) set out for each of the last five years and (b) provide forecasts where available for the next two years of GDP per head for each nation and region of the UK, and as a proportion of UK GDP per head; and what the GDP per head was for each nation of the UK assuming (i) 70 per cent., (ii) 80 per cent. and (iii) 90 per cent. allocation of continental shelf GDP to Scotland.

Andrew Smith: Gross domestic product (GDP) per head data for each English region, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are reported annually in Economic Trends and Regional Trends, copies of which are available in the House of Commons Library. The 2001 edition of Regional Trends (ISSN 02611783) shows the latest available data in Chapter 12: Regional Accounts. The latest data are also available in electronic form on the ONS database, which can be accessed via the House of Commons Library.
	Extra-region GDPwhich includes 'continental shelf' activity relating to offshore oil and gas extraction, UK embassies overseas and armed forces stationed abroadcomprises compensation of employees and gross operating surplus that cannot be assigned to regions. It is reported in Regional Trends alongside regional GDP.
	The Treasury does not produce forecasts of GDP for the English regions, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.

Correspondence

Nigel Evans: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the average response time was for responding to departmental correspondence; what percentage of letters took longer than one month for a response; and what percentage took longer than three months for a response in each of the last five years.

Paul Boateng: Information for 2000 and 2001 and average response times for 1999 in relation to ministerial correspondence only are as follows:
	
		
			 HM Treasury 1999 2000 2001 
		
		
			 Average response (working days) 27 24 19 
			 Percentage over 1 month n/a (103)25.0 (103)18.0 
			 Percentage over 3 months n/a (103)2.0 (103)1.3 
		
	
	(103) Sample based
	Information for earlier years and on other types of correspondence are not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Tax Credits Bill

James Clappison: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects the provisions of Part 2 of the Tax Credits Bill to be commenced.

Dawn Primarolo: As I said in the debate at Report Stage of the Tax Credits Bill on 7 February 2002, Official Report column 1060, the Government plan to introduce the new tax credits from April 2003. The date will be confirmed in the Budget.

ECOFIN

Jackie Lawrence: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the outcome was of the ECOFIN Council held in Brussels on 12 February.

Gordon Brown: I attended ECOFIN on 12 February.
	The European Commission presented reports on the functioning of EU product and capital markets and set out its priorities for the 2002 Broad Economic Policy Guidelines.
	The Council examined and after debate agreed opinions on the updated stability and convergence programmes for Germany, Greece, Spain, France, Ireland, Italy, Portugal and the United Kingdom, produced in line with the Stability and Growth Pact. The Council also agreed additional statements on Germany and Portugal, in which both countries set out the disciplines they should follow in future years.
	The Commission and the ECB summarised latest developments on the transition to the euro.
	The presidency noted that all member states had now ratified the Council decision of September 2000 on own resources. This will now take effect from March 2002, with any differences resulting from the late entry into force being corrected with retrospective effect from 1 January.
	The Commission presented its proposals for a budgetary framework for enlargement, for use in the accession negotiations. Following a brief discussion, the presidency concluded that the Commission should now draw up draft common positions for the financial aspects of enlargement that were in conformity with the Berlin European Council budgetary settlement. These should not be linked with parallel discussions later in the year on reform of the common agricultural policy. Equally, it was important that enlargement should not impede reform.
	ECOFIN reached political agreement on VAT on e-commerce without discussion. The amended directive and regulation make welcome changes to the rules governing the taxation of digitised products, so as to correct certain distortions of competition. During the negotiations the UK successfully secured an explicit commitment, which now features in the directive, to move, by 2006, to a comprehensive electronic solution for the taxation of such items which will treat EU and non-EU businesses on an identical basis.

Population Income (Increases)

Alex Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for each income decile what the annual increase in total income has been for (a) pensioners since 1992 and (b) the population as a whole.

Ian McCartney: I have been asked to reply.
	Such information as is available can be found in the publication Households Below Average Income 199495 to 200001, a copy of which is available in the Library.

Films

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what definition of a film he uses in extending tax allowances to film production; and how many (a) films and (b) television programmes have benefited from such allowances in the last five years;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the extent to which tax allowances have been taken up by (a) independent film makers and (b) television shows.

Dawn Primarolo: There are three main measures providing enhanced tax relief for the production or acquisition of films. A film is defined in Schedule 1 of the Films Act 1985 as including:
	any record, however made, of a sequence of visual images, which is a record capable of being used as a means of showing that sequence as a moving picture.
	We estimate that between 1 July 1997 and 30 June 2001 1,433 productions have benefited from the films tax reliefs.

Partnerships UK

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 4 February 2002, Official Report, column 706W, on Geoffrey Spence, which Department has responsibility for Partnerships UK.

Andrew Smith: Partnerships UK (PUK) is a public limited company in which the HM Government and Scottish Ministers together hold a minority (49 per cent.) shareholding.
	PUK provides services to a wide range of Government Departments and other public bodies. It also assists public bodies with joint venture and investment activities. HM Treasury is responsible for the Government's shareholding and nominates two non-executive directors to the PUK Board. HM Treasury has also established an advisory council chaired by Sir Andrew Turnball, Permanent Secretary to the Treasury. The membership consists of representatives from Government Departments, the devolved Administrations, local authorities and other public bodies drawn from PUK's client base. The council's remit is to review the effectiveness of Partnerships UK in fulfilling its public sector mission.

Research and Development Investment

Alex Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make a statement on the additional support he intends offering small and medium-sized enterprises to increase research and development investment.

Paul Boateng: Budget 2000 introduced an RD tax credit for small and medium-sized companies. It provides a tax deduction of 150 per cent. of the cost of all qualifying RD expenditure. Under this enhanced relief the cash cost of RD will be reduced by 30 per cent. for a company paying tax at the small companies' rate. Companies that are not yet in profit can take the relief up front and reduce the cash cost of their RD by 24 per cent.
	To encourage high risk investment by small enterprises PBR 2001 announced:
	an increase in the gross asset limit for Enterprise Management Incentives (EMIs) from 15 million to 30 million.
	publication of a prospectus for a 50 million early growth fund to help at least 1,000 businesses access the risk capital they need to develop and grow.

Government Expenditure (NHS)

Alex Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will state, for each year since 1990, Government spending on the NHS in (a) the UK, (b) England and (c) Scotland, (i) in real terms and (ii) as a percentage of GDP.

Andrew Smith: Figures for identifiable total managed spending on health and personal social services in the UK, England and Scotland are published annually in the Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses. The latest publication shows figures for 199596 to 19992000. Figures for earlier years are published in earlier publications which are available in the House of Commons Library.
	Information on NHS expenditure as a proportion of GDP in the UK for the period 19992000 to 200304 is also published in the Department of Health departmental report (Cm 5103) for England and the United Kingdom. Health spending in Scotland is a devolved matter described in the Scottish Executive's budget documents for Scotland.

Departmental Overseas Visits

Christopher Chope: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many overseas visits have been undertaken by parliamentary private secretaries in his Department at departmental expense in each of the last four years; and at what cost to public funds.

Ruth Kelly: No such visits have been undertaken at departmental expense in the period specified.

National Savings

Christopher Chope: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if a cost benefit analysis of changing the name of the Office of National Savings was carried out; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: The name change is just one part of the transformation process undertaken by National Savings and Investments to modernise its operation, improve efficiency and upgrade services to customers.
	It followed a strategic marketing review which showed that the agency's main role of raising funds for the Government cost effectively could only be sustained if it:
	designed a new brand positioning and relaunched
	introduced new products
	introduced new channels of distribution
	improved direct mail capability
	developed the relationship with the Post Office.
	The most important key success factor was demonstrated to be the relaunch of the brand.

Unitary Authorities

Andrew George: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what the mean average population is of unitary authorities in England;
	(2)  if he will list all unitary authorities by the latest known resident population number.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Karen Dunnell to Mr. Andrew George, dated 25 February 2002
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent questions concerning the population and average size of unitary authorities. (36634 and 36639)
	The attached table shows the unitary authorities, their populations and the average number of persons per unitary authority in both England and Wales.
	
		Table 1 Population at mid-2000: unitary authorities in England and Wales -- thousand
		
			 Area Persons 
		
		
			 England  
			 North-east  
			 Darlington UA 100.6 
			 Hartlepool UA 92.3 
			 Middlesbrough UA 143.9 
			 Redcar and Cleveland UA 136.4 
			 Stockton-on-Tees UA 184.1 
			   
			 North-west  
			 Blackburn with Darwen UA 138.1 
			 Blackpool UA 150.7 
			 Halton UA 120.8 
			 Warrington UA 190.8 
			   
			 Yorkshire and The Humber  
			 East Riding of Yorkshire UA 318.9 
			 Kingston upon Hull, City of UA 254.3 
			 North East Lincolnshire UA 155.2 
			 North Lincolnshire UA 152.5 
			 York UA 179.3 
			   
			 East Midlands  
			 Derby UA 236.3 
			 Leicester UA 289.7 
			 Nottingham UA 282.9 
			 Rutland UA 37.8 
			   
			 West Midlands  
			 Herefordshire, County of UA 169.3 
			 Stoke-on-Trent UA 249.0 
			 Telford and Wrekin UA 151.3 
			 East  
			 Luton UA 183.1 
			 Peterborough UA 156.5 
			 Southend-on-Sea UA 176.9 
			 Thurrock UA 135.8 
			   
			 South-east  
			 Bracknell Forest UA 111.1 
			 Brighton and Hove UA 259.9 
			 Isle of Wight UA 129.4 
			 Medway UA 244.8 
			 Milton Keynes UA 209.8 
			 Portsmouth UA 189.1 
			 Reading UA 147.7 
			 Slough UA 111.1 
			 Southampton UA 214.9 
			 West Berkshire UA 144.3 
			 Windsor and Maidenhead UA 142.6 
			 Workingham UA 146.0 
			   
			 South-west  
			 Bath and North East Somerset UA 170.2 
			 Bournemouth UA 163.4 
			 Bristol, City of UA 406.2 
			 North Somerset UA 191.1 
			 Plymouth UA 254.2 
			 Poole UA 140.9 
			 South Gloucestershire UA 247.9 
			 Swindon UA 181.5 
			 Torbay UA 126.1 
			 Total population in unitary authorities in England 8,318.8 
			 Average persons per unitary authority in England 180.8 
			   
			 Wales  
			 Blaenau Gwent 71.2 
			 Bridgend 131.5 
			 Caerphilly 170.5 
			 Cardiff 327.5 
			 Carmarthenshire 169.1 
			 Ceredigion 72.2 
			 Conwy 112.7 
			 Denbighshire 91.8 
			 Flintshire 148.3 
			 Gwynedd 116.8 
			 Isle of Anglesey 64.8 
			 Merthyr Tydfil 55.8 
			 Monmouthshire 87.4 
			 Neath Port Talbot 138.0 
			 Newport 138.5 
			 Pembrokeshire 114.7 
			 Powys 126.8 
			 Rhondda, Cynon, Taff 239.8 
			 Swansea 230.3 
			 Torfaen 89.8 
			 The Vale of Glamorgan 122.9 
			 Wrexham 125.7 
			 Total population in unitary authorities in Wales 2,946.2 
			 Average persons per unitary authority in Wales 133.9 
		
	
	Note:
	Figures may not add exactly because of rounding
	Source:
	Office for National Statistics

IT Contacts

Richard Younger-Ross: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what has been the total expenditure of his Department on IT systems and support in each year from May 1997 to date; how many IT contracts have been let in each of those years; of the other main contracting party in each of those contracts, how many have been (a) companies whose registered office is in (i) England and Wales, (ii) Scotland and (iii) Northern Ireland and (b) foreign companies; and what are the names of the companies falling within category (a).

Ruth Kelly: The information is as follows:
	
		HM Treasury --  million
		
			  IT expenditure 
		
		
			 199798 3.1 
			 199899 3.9 
			 19992000 3.8 
			 200001 3.5 
			 200102 3.1 
		
	
	The Treasury has let the following IT contracts over this period:
	Star Computers: for the supply of IT desktop and portable equipment. Contract awarded in December 1997.
	Mitech Europe Ltd.: network support. Contract awarded in December 1999.
	Computacenter Ltd.: for the supply of servers, software and networking equipment. Contract awarded via the Office of Government Commerce (OGC) using a GCAT agreement in January 2000.
	Rebus HR Ltd.: provide personnel software. Contract awarded in January 2000.
	Diagonal Solutions Ltd.: software maintenance. Contract awarded in June 2000.
	Anite Public sector Ltd.: moving IT equipment into new Treasury building. Contract awarded in November 2001.
	Lynx Technology Ltd.: software support services. Contract awarded in January 2002.
	Centerprise International: for the supply of IT desktop and portable equipment. Contract awarded in January 2002.
	All companies mentioned are registered in England.
	Microsoft Ltd.: software maintenance. Contract awarded in December 2000. The company is registered in the United States of America.
	Decision Support Systems Ltd.: accounting software. Contract awarded in October 2001. The company are registered in New Zealand.
	
		Customs and Excise
		
			   million IT expenditure 
		
		
			 199798 8.2 
			 199899 31.8 
			 19992000 11.7 
			 200001 3.3 
			 200102 4.8 
		
	
	The decline in spend on computer equipment and maintenance over the last four years can be explained by the implementation of a PFI contract in HM Customs and Excise, which means that we no longer purchase our IS infrastructure equipment but pay a service charge for its provision by our PFI provider.The Department has one main IS provider through a PFI, this being ICL. This is a 10 year contract awarded on 25 August 1999 with a TOU issued on 31 March 2000. We are currently novating nearly all our IT contracts (including software licences obtained through various local offices) into this contract. The number is around 182 although it is expected to grow. ICL is an English registered company.
	
		Debt Management Office (DMO)
		
			   million IT expenditure 
		
		
			 199899 0.7 
			 19992000 1.4 
			 200001 2.0 
			 200102 1.6 
		
	
	The DMO has an on going contract with Computacenter Ltd. who have provided the Department with IT equipment since 1999. Computacenter is registered in England. Inland Revenue
	The Department currently has three major contracts in place to provide its IT systems and support. We have two strategic technology partners, EDS and Accenture, who provide support, development and maintenance of our IT systems and one framework contract (with Computacenter) for the supply of IT equipment.
	The IT Services contract was let to EDS in 1994 for 10 years.
	The NIRS 2 contract for operational services was awarded to Andersen Consulting (now Accenture) in May 1995 and runs to 2004.
	In November 1994 the Department let the IROS contract for the supply of desktop equipment to CSC/Computacenter. This was replaced in June 2000 by the e-IROS contract with Computacenter. Total annual expenditure under these contracts from April 1997 to January 2002 is as follows:
	
		
			   million IT expenditure 
		
		
			 199798 25.1 
			 199899 31.9 
			 19992000 32.3 
			 200001 29.8 
			 200102 38.5 
		
	
	All of the companies mentioned have registered offices in England.
	The parent companies of CSC and EDS are US based.

Tax Polarisation

Howard Flight: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what he expects to be the impact on the revenue arising from abolishing polarisation in respect of (a) VAT, (b) capital gains tax and (c) other taxes.

Ruth Kelly: All taxes are kept under review, as are the revenue implications of other policy changes.

Temporary Employees

John Bercow: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what positions in (a) his Department and (b) all executive agencies for which his Department is responsible are filled by employees who are employed on temporary contracts of (i) 51 weeks' and (ii) less than 51 weeks' duration.

Ruth Kelly: The information is given as follows:
	
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 HM Treasury  
			 (i) 51 weeks  
			 Range E 3 
			 Range D 6 
			 Range C 2 
			 Range B 3 
			   
			 (ii) Less than 51 weeks  
			 Range E 7 
			 Range D 15 
			 Range C 3 
			 Range B 1 
			   
			 HM Customs and Excise  
			 (i) 51 weeks 0 
			   
			 (ii) Less than 51 weeks  
			 Information and Library Resource Manager 2 
			 Information Specialist 2 
			 Photographic Officer 1 
			 Advice, Support and Process Contact Officer 1 
			 Business Support Administrator 12 
			 Corporate Services Admin Officer 1 
			 Advice Centre Support 1 
			 Business Support Administrator 27 
			 Business Support Assistant 319 
			 Corporate Services Assistant 9 
			 Customs Assistant 21 
			 Fast Keyer 11 
			 IS Operational Support Officer 3 
			 Kennel Assistant 2 
			 Revenue constable 9 
			 Typist 1 
			 UK Revenue Assistant 18 
			   
			 Inland Revenue  
			 (i) 51 weeks 0 
			   
			 (ii) Less than 51 weeks  
			 Officer 92 
			 Assistant 981 
			 Other 5 
			   
			 Government Actuary's Department  
			 (i) 51 weeks 0 
			   
			 (ii) Less than 51 weeks  
			 Trainee Actuaries 4 
			 National Savings  
			 (i) 51 weeks 0 
			   
			 (ii) Less than 51 weeks  
			 Accounts Manager 1 
			 Personnel Assistant 1 
			 Administrative Assistant 1 
			 Supplier Relationship Manager 1 
			 Contracts Assistant 1 
			 Performance Analyst 1 
			   
			 Office of National Statistics  
			 (i) 51 weeks 0 
			   
			 (ii) Less than 51 weeks  
			 Staff 208 
			   
			 Royal Mint  
			 (i) 51 weeks 0 
			   
			 (ii) Less than 51 weeks  
			 Medallists 7 
			 Collector Coin Packers 9 
			 Store Person 1 
			   
			 Non-Industrial Staff  
			 Clerks 5 
			   
			 Valuation Office  
			 (i) 51 weeks 0 
			   
			 (ii) Less than 51 weeks  
			 Clerical staff 57 
			 Higher Executive Officers 4 
			 Senior Executive Officer 1 
			   
			 Total numbers for all Departments  
			 (i) 51 weeks 12 
			 (ii) Less than 51 weeks 1,866

EC Budgets

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the main items of income and expenditure of the general budgets of the European Community for each year from 1995 to the latest available year in the manner of the answer of 11 February 1997, Official Report, columns 11922W.

Ruth Kelly: The information from 1995 to 2000, based on currently available EU documents and at 2000 prices, is set out in the following tables.
	
		Table 1: European Community BudgetExpenditure -- Million euro(104)
		
			  1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 
		
		
			 EAGGF Guarantee 37,855 42,108 42,478 40,249 40,061 40,506 
			 Percentage of total general budget 51.8 51.0 50.6 48.3 47.3 48.6 
			
			 Structural Funds  25,906 
			 Percentage of total general budget  31.1 
			
			 EAGGF Guidance 2,777 3,598 3,762 3,628 3,831  
			 Percentage of total general budget 3.8 4.4 4.5 4.4 4.5  
			
			 ERDF 9,191 11,361 12,107 12,135 14,217  
			 Percentage of total general budget 12.6 13.8 14.4 14.6 16.8  
			
			 ESF 4,991 6,459 6,456 7,833 7,354  
			 Percentage of total general budget 6.8 7.8 7.7 9.4 8.7  
			 FIFG 272 451 512 420 580  
			 Percentage of total general budget 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.5 0.7  
			
			 Cohesion Fund 1,865 2,005 2,441 2,407 2,773 1,685 
			 Percentage of total general budget 2.6 2.4 2.9 2.9 2.6 2.0 
			
			 Research 2,720 3,082 3,133 3,058 2,669 3,404 
			 Percentage of total general budget 3.7 3.7 3.7 3.7 3.1 4.1 
			
			 Administration 4,248 4,295 4,409 4,297 4,173 4,643 
			 Percentage of total general budget 5.8 5.2 5.3 5.2 4.9 5.6 
			
			 Other 9,121 9,126 8,579 9,296 9,087 7,187 
			 Percentage of total general budget 12.5 11.1 10.2 11.2 10.7 8.6 
			 Total 73,040 82,486 83,876 83,323 84,744 83,331 
		
	
	
		Table 2: European Community BudgetRevenue -- Million euro(104)
		
			  1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 
		
		
			 Agricultural levies 2,134 1,950 2,023 2,014 2,184  
			 Percentage of total revenue 2.6 2.2 2.4 2.3 2.5  
			
			 Customs duties 13,729 12,595 12,870 12,523 11,881  
			 Percentage of total revenue 16.7 14.5 15.2 14.4 13.5  
			
			 VAT 43,006 36,367 35,962 34,119 31,631 35,122 
			 Percentage of total revenue 52.2 41.8 42.5 39.2 35.9 37.9 
			
			 GNP 15,576 25,216 28,265 36,079 38,072 37,580 
			 Percentage of total revenue 18.9 29.0 33.4 41.4 43.2 40.5 
			
			 Misc. 7,957 10,900 5,522 2,349 4,438 4,755 
			 Percentage of total revenue 9.7 12.5 6.5 2.7 5.0 5.1 
			
			 Traditional Own Resources  15,267 
			 Percentage of total revenue  16.5 
			 Total 82,402 87,029 84,642 87,085 88,207 92,725 
		
	
	(104) Figures are in millions of euro at constant 2000 prices
	Notes:
	1. figures are for outturn. As yet outturn figures are not available for 2001.
	2. Figures converted to constant 2000 prices using EU15 deflator throughout.
	3. Items are denominated in euro as that is the unit of account for the EC Budget.
	4. Other spending includes spending on external policies and internal policies other than research.
	Sources:
	1. The Community Budget: The facts in figures, 2000 Edition; European Commission.
	2. European Court of Auditors Report on the 2000 Budget (Official Journal C359, 15 December 2001).
	3. Allocation of 2000 EU operating expenditure; European Commission (September 2001).
	4. European Economy, Number 72, 2001 (Table 24, page 161); European Commission.

Working Time Directive

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment has been made of the effect of the working time directive on his Department's employees; how many employees are working in excess of 48 hours per week; what steps he is taking to reduce this number; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: Working hours are monitored in the Treasury. I am arranging to place in the Library of the House an update of the table which accompanied the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Truro and St. Austell (Matthew Taylor) on 14 November 2001, Official Report, columns 77374W.
	Sufficient staff have been recruited to fill all complemented posts in the Treasury, and the Department has a number of alternative working policies in place such as flexible working hours, part-time working and compressed hours, as well as working at home. These are available to all staff by agreement with their line managers.

Departmental Assets

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the value of the outstanding leases on (a) Allington Towers SW1, (b) Cheapside House EC2V and (c) Fleetbank House EC4Y; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: The Treasury terminated its lease on Cheapside House earlier this year, and has leased Eastcheap Court since March 2001.
	The Department occupies each of these premises under an operating lease, held under normal commercial terms with regular rent reviews which do not give rise to any significant value for the Department's interests.

Capita Group

Boris Johnson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will review computer security at Capita- administered Government schemes or projects.

Andrew Smith: Each Department is responsible for specifying security requirements when letting contracts and ensuring that suppliers comply. The Office of the e-Envoy recommends technical security standards such as use of smartcards or digital signatures.

Capita Group

Boris Johnson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations the Government have received from the Capita Group since 24 October 2001.

Andrew Smith: This information is not held centrally.

Wanless Report

John Bercow: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he intends to publish the next stage of the Wanless report.

Andrew Smith: The Terms of Reference for Derek Wanless' review ask him to report to the Chancellor of the Exchequer by April 2002.

Princess Diana Memorial Committee

John Bercow: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what reason there is no specific provision in the 2001 accounts of the Royal Mint for sums to be paid to projects recommended by the Princess Diana Memorial Committee.

Ruth Kelly: The Royal Mint accounts for 200001 included a provision for the royalties due in respect of Princess Diana collector coin sales. In accordance with generally accepted accounting practice in the UK this provision was included within trade creditors in the published accounts.

West Bank and Gaza Strip (Imports)

Richard Burden: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps are being taken by HM Customs to identify and monitor imports from the illegal settlements of the West Bank and Gaza Strip; and what action is taken where relevant authorities fail to co-operate in post- clearance verification inquiries.

Paul Boateng: Customs are identifying imports declared to be of Israeli origin but which seem likely to have been produced in the settlements and are sending verification requests to Israel. As this is an EU wide issue, Customs intend to co-ordinate action with the European Commission and other member states in the event of failure to co-operate by the relevant authorities.

West Bank and Gaza Strip (Imports)

Richard Burden: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how exporters of goods based in the illegal settlements of the West Bank and Gaza Strip will be alerted to the steps being taken by HM Customs in respect of the EC-wide exercise to ensure that origins of imports are properly declared.

Paul Boateng: In their recent publicity HM Customs strongly advise importers that they should check with their Israeli suppliers that the products they are importing have not originated in the settlements. The Israeli authorities are also well aware of the position.

West Bank and Gaza Strip (Imports)

Richard Burden: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what advice is given by Customs and Excise to importers to ensure that origins of imports are properly declared on all goods which originated in the illegal settlements of the West Bank and Gaza Strip; and in which trade magazines and on what website the advice will appear.

Paul Boateng: Customs and Excise strongly advise importers to check with their Israeli suppliers that the products they are declaring as of Israeli origin have not originated in the settlements. This advice has been published as Joint Customs Consultative Committee Information Paper (01) 55, which has been placed on the Customs website, http://www.hmce.gov.uk (under Forms and publications, Information papers). Articles have been provided to International Trade Today and Croners.

Industrial Action

John Bercow: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many days have been lost owing to industrial action by staff in his Department, agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each of the last four years.

Ruth Kelly: No working days were lost as a result of industrial action by staff in the Chancellor of the Exchequer's Department, agencies and non-governmental bodies in each of the last four years.

Ministerial Boxes

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer by what means ministerial boxes are conveyed from private offices in his Department to (a) himself and (b) his Ministers; how frequently and at what expense private courier firms are employed for such a task; and which courier firms have been used for such duties.

Ruth Kelly: Ministerial boxes originating from the Treasury are transported to Ministers' homes either by Government car or by a service provided by the Royal Mail.

Conference Sponsorship

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 11 February 2002, Official Report, column 116W, on the Creating knowledge: Creating Wealth conference, how many companies bid for the right to sponsor the conference; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: This seminar was one of a series that followed publication of guidance on Selling Government Services into Wider Markets, published by the Treasury in 1998. There were discussions with at least six different firms about whether they were interested in sponsoring one or more of these seminars.

Government Investment (Research and Development)

Alex Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will provide a breakdown, for each nation and region of the UK, of Government investment in research and development since 1995.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Alex Salmond, dated 25 February 2002
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question on Government investment in research and development since 1995. (36412)
	The Office for National Statistics (ONS) conducts an annual survey of UK Government Department's research and development (RD) expenditure, from which the amount of RD performed within Government establishments is available at Government Office Region (GOR) level. Figures for 1995 to 1999, by nation and GOR, can be found in the ONS publication Regional Trends, Chapter 13.9 as follows:
	1995 Regional Trends 32, 1997
	1996 Regional Trends 33, 1998
	1997 Regional Trends 34, 1999
	1998 Regional Trends 35, 2000
	1999 Regional Trends 36, 2001.
	This information can also be found at the following web address: http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/themecompendia/regiona ltrends2001/rt36.pdf.
	Government funding into business enterprise RD expenditure at GOR level is available from the annual survey of UK Business Enterprise RD survey. Figures for the years 1995 to 2000 are shown in the attached table. Data for Government investment in other sectors of the economy (Higher Education and the Private Non-Profit sectors) are not available at a regional level.
	Total UK Government funding of RD can be found in the ONS Gross Domestic Expenditure on Research and Development First Release published in March every year. The latest available data relates to 1999, however no regional breakdown is available. This publication can be found at http://www.statistics.gov.uk/pressrelease/Archive.asp.
	
		Government research and development funding to UK businesses by Government Office Region: 1995 to 2000 --  million
		
			  1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 
		
		
			 England 866 765 844 1,004 1,081 939 
			 North East 5 5 2 3 5 2 
			 North West 77 78 61 87 102 94 
			 Yorkshire and Humberside 21 18 11 7 8 4 
			 East Midlands 68 82 85 143 131 65 
			 West Midlands 16 15 18 25 41 38 
			 Eastern 174 146 214 239 256 330 
			 London 59 60 85 91 97 111 
			 South East 273 233 237 238 266 176 
			 South West 173 129 129 170 177 119 
			 Northern Ireland 12 6 6 6 5 6 
			 Scotland 71 66 58 78 58 59 
			 Wales 5 5 7 7 13 7 
			 United Kingdom 953 842 915 1,094 1,157 1,011 
		
	
	Source:
	Survey of UK Business Enterprise Research  Development, ONS

Self-assessment

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people have sent in self-assessment tax forms since 31 January; how many of those have (a) paid the 100 fine and (b) been excused the 100 fine; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: Between 31 January and 8 February 2002, 444,750 returns have been sent in. Penalty notices have not yet been issued so we have no information on penalties for this year but we would not expect any significant numbers of people to have yet paid a penalty.

Self-assessment

Alex Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what percentage of liable taxpayers failed to meet his Department's deadlines for submitting tax self-assessment forms; what estimate he has of the total revenue from penalties for late submission; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: The latest year for which figures are available is the year to 31 January 2001.
	10 per cent. of SA taxpayers to whom a return was issued failed to file by the filing deadline.
	The Inland Revenue accounts for its receipts in accounts years running from November to October.
	For the account year 2000, receipts from self- assessment penalties totalled 33 million and the figures for account year 2001 will be available later this financial year.

Child Care Costs

Alex Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to increase the level of support to families to pay for child care costs.

Dawn Primarolo: The child care tax credit element of working families tax credit is a targeted measure to help low paid parents, for whom the cost of child care can be a significant barrier to work. The credit is worth 70 per cent. of eligible child care costs up to limits of 135 a week for a family with one child and 200 for a family with two or more children. The limits were increased to this level in June 2001 in response to representations about the costs of child care. The child care tax credit element has been extremely successful with around 155,000 families benefiting. This is more than three times the number who benefited from the family credit disregard at its peak.
	Under the new system of tax credits which will be introduced from April 2003 the new working tax credit will contain a child care component. The Government welcome evidence about the cost of child care and keep the levels of support under review. Rates and thresholds for the new tax credits will be set in Budget 2002.

Child Care Costs

Alex Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the proportion of child care costs met by (a) Government, (b) business and (c) parents;
	(2)  what the percentage is of child care costs met by (a) Government, (b) business and (c) parents in other member states of the EU.

Dawn Primarolo: The Government do not collect data on the proportion of the cost met through different sources, nor does such data exist on an internationally comparable basis.
	The National Childcare Strategy is ensuring that affordable, accessible and good quality child care is available in every neighbourhood, and Spending Review 2000 allocated an additional 225 million from 2001 to 2004 to tackle the child care gap between disadvantaged and more affluent areas.
	To support working families with their child care costs, the working families tax credit includes a child care tax credit component which pays 70 per cent. of the costs of eligible child care up to limits of 135 per week for one child and 200 per week for two or more children. Around 155,000 families are receiving support with their child care costs, over three times as many as benefited from the child care disregard under family credit at its peak.
	The Government's Work Life Balance Campaign is increasing awareness and take-up of employment policies and practices which benefit business and help employees enjoy a better balance between work and other demands on their lives.

Benefits (Walthamstow)

Neil Gerrard: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people in the Walthamstow constituency are in receipt of (a) working families tax credit and (b) children's tax credit.

Dawn Primarolo: I refer my hon. Friend to my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Feltham and Heston (Mr. Keen) on 4 February 2002, Official Report, column 694W.

Student Finances

Jim Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how many full-time students registered entitlement to national insurance eligibility in the financial year in the last three financial years; and what proportion established eligibility over a full contribution year;
	(2)  if he will estimate how many full-time students have earnings; how many claimed holiday earnings exemptions under form P38(S); and how many students may have overpaid tax in the last three full financial years.

Dawn Primarolo: A national insurance number is generally notified to a person shortly before they reach their sixteenth birthday. Any employee over the age of 16 is liable to pay Class 1 contributions where, in any tax week, earnings are paid which exceed the NICs employees's earnings threshold. We have no information on numbers of students who pay contributions.
	I regret that I cannot provide reliable estimates for these questions as the Inland Revenue do not hold this information centrally.

G7 Meeting (Ottawa)

Martyn Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the outcome of the recent G7 meeting in Ottawa.

Ruth Kelly: G7 Finance Ministers and Central bank governors met in Ottawa on the 8 and 9 February. They discussed the global economy; the importance of fostering development; and on-going efforts to combat the financing of terrorism.
	Ministers and governors agreed that since they had last met, prospects had generally strengthened for resumed expansion in their economies, although risks remained. Ministers and governors agreed the need for more effective use of development assistance and a commitment to sound policies, good governance and the rule of law by all countries. They considered possible innovative ways to mobilize additional domestic and external resources, trade and external debt, and looked forward to continued discussions at the UN Financing for Development conference in Monterrey in March.
	The full statement from the meeting, including an action plan on combating the financing of terrorism, is available in the Library.

EU Budget (British Rebate)

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the total value, in sterling, of the British rebate from the EU budget is from 1984 to the most recent year for which figures are available.

Ruth Kelly: The total value of the UK abatement up to the end of 200001 can be found in the final paragraph of Chapter 14.4 of the Departmental Report of the Chancellor of the Exchequer's Departments (Cm 5116) published in April 2001.

Railtrack

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the answer of 4 February 2002, Official Report, column 702W, on Railtrack, which criteria he used when determining that disclosure would harm the frankness and candour of internal discussion.

Andrew Smith: As I said in my previous answer, a railway administration order was made in respect of Railtrack plc under the provisions of the Railways Act 1993. No extra legislation was necessary to put the company into administration.
	There is no obligation to disclose confidential communications between Departments, in accordance with Exemption 2 (Internal discussion and advice) of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.
	I have nothing to add to that answer.

Kingscrest Associates and Montecello

Jim Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects the appeal against the London VAT Tribunal decision in the case of Kingscrest Associates and Montecello to be heard; and what legal costs Customs have incurred in this case.

Paul Boateng: The appeal by Customs will be heard by the High Court on either the 18 or 19 February 2002. The costs incurred to date are 26,466.

Headwear (VAT)

Phil Sawford: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much revenue the Treasury has received from VAT on riding hats in each of the past five years for which figures are available; and what figures he has collated on the rate of VAT levied on (a) motorcycle helmets, (b) bicycle helmets and (c) riding hats in each of the EU member states.

Paul Boateng: No such information is available.

Business R and D

Alex Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the (a) total and (b) business research and development is as a percentage of GDP for (i) the UK and (ii) Scotland.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Alex Salmond, dated 25 February 2002
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question about what the (a) total and (b) business research and development as a percentage of GDP for (i) the UK and (ii) Scotland. (36413)
	The latest available information is in respect of 1999.
	The UK total research  development (RD) as a percentage of GDP for 1999 is 1.8 per cent. Total RD data in respect of 2000 will be available from March 2002. There is no regional breakdown available and therefore no information is available for Scotland.
	UK Business RD as a percentage of GDP for 1999 is 1.2 per cent. Business RD as a percentage of GDP for 1999 for Scotland is 0.5 per cent. Regional business RD as a percentage of GDP for 2000 will not be available until the completion of 2000 regional GDP figures in April 2002.

National Insurance

Jim Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many employees in each region and nation of the UK, and what percentage of all employees, had earnings below the lower earnings limit for national insurance in each year since 1997; and what proportion of such workers were women.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Jim Cousins, dated 25 February 2002
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question about the number of employees earning below the lower earnings limit for National Insurance since 1997. (37291)
	The attached table gives the available information from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) for the autumn (September to November) quarters of each year from 1997 to 2001.
	
		Numbers and percentages of employees whose gross weekly earnings are less than the lower limit for national insurance. -- Autumn (September to November) quarters 1996 to 2001, not seasonally adjusted
		
			 Government Office Regions Thousands Percentage of all employees Percentage who are women 
		
		
			  Autumn (September to November) 1996  
			 United Kingdom 2,534 11.1 78.1 
			 England 2,164 11.2 78.1 
			 North East 120 12.3 80.0 
			 North West 302 11.6 82.7 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 217 11.3 75.7 
			 East Midlands 224 13.0 81.8 
			 West Midlands 225 10.7 85.9 
			 Eastern 261 12.0 81.3 
			 London 167 6.3 72.4 
			 South East 392 11.9 74.7 
			 South West 258 13.9 71.3 
			 Wales 137 13.2 74.8 
			 Scotland 186 9.2 77.3 
			 Northern Ireland (105) (105) (105) 
			 
			  Autumn (September to November) 1997  
			 United Kingdom 2,509 10.7 78.8 
			 England 2,131 10.8 78.6 
			 North East 127 13.1 80.7 
			 North West 291 11.0 78.3 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 222 11.2 79.9 
			 East Midlands 209 11.9 77.8 
			 West Midlands 236 10.9 76.9 
			 Eastern 242 10.8 82.8 
			 London 189 6.8 72.7 
			 South East 362 10.8 79.0 
			 South West 253 13.1 79.0 
			 Wales 107 10.3 83.2 
			 Scotland 216 10.6 78.7 
			 Northern Ireland 55 9.5 74.3 
			 
			  Autumn (September to November) 1998  
			 United Kingdom 2,435 10.1 78.5 
			 England 2,058 10.2 78.6 
			 North East 133 13.8 80.2 
			 North West 298 11.1 80.5 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 201 9.9 82.5 
			 East Midlands 190 10.8 78.4 
			 West Midlands 230 10.4 78.8 
			 Eastern 236 10.3 78.4 
			 London 195 6.8 67.9 
			 South East 333 9.5 78.4 
			 South West 243 12.2 81.2 
			 Wales 121 11.3 81.9 
			 Scotland 205 9.8 79.3 
			 Northern Ireland 51 8.7 65.2 
			 
			  Autumn (September to November) 1999  
			 United Kingdom 2,262 9.3 76.8 
			 England 1,901 9.3 76.7 
			 North East 109 11.3 83.1 
			 North West 255 9.2 74.2 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 167 8.2 85.1 
			 East Midlands 170 9.6 79.1 
			 West Midlands 228 10.4 79.2 
			 Eastern 217 9.4 78.9 
			 London 202 6.9 64.4 
			 South East 319 9.1 73.7 
			 South West 233 11.4 78.7 
			 Wales 129 11.8 77.6 
			 Scotland 189 9.0 77.5 
			 Northern Ireland 43 7.3 78.1 
			 
			  Autumn (September to November) 2000  
			 United Kingdom 2,104 8.5 75.2 
			 England 1,774 8.5 75.1 
			 North East 88 8.8 78.2 
			 North West 227 8.2 77.2 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 220 10.5 73.0 
			 East Midlands 152 8.5 80.6 
			 West Midlands 203 9.2 78.1 
			 Eastern 203 8.5 75.2 
			 London 170 5.9 64.3 
			 South East 319 9.0 76.7 
			 South West 192 9.3 73.3 
			 Wales 116 10.6 69.6 
			 Scotland 166 7.7 77.0 
			 Northern Ireland 48 7.9 87.0 
			  Autumn (September to November) 2001  
			 United Kingdom 2,060 8.3 75.3 
			 England 1,746 8.3 75.0 
			 North East 84 8.3 77.4 
			 North West 223 8.0 76.4 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 191 9.2 78.0 
			 East Midlands 161 8.9 77.5 
			 West Midlands 191 8.5 80.6 
			 Eastern 220 9.1 73.6 
			 London 154 5.1 64.9 
			 South East 291 8.1 74.1 
			 South West 231 11.1 73.5 
			 Wales 96 8.7 81.7 
			 Scotland 158 7.4 77.1 
			 Northern Ireland 59 9.7 66.9 
		
	
	(105) Sample size too small for reliable estimate.
	Source:
	ONS Labour Force Survey.

Marriage Statistics

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many marriages were contracted between UK nationals residing in the UK and spouses living abroad; and how many and what percentage were arranged marriages in each year since 1997.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Karen Dunnell to Mr. Gordon Prentice, dated 25 February 2002
	The National Statistician and Registrar General for England and Wales has been asked to reply to your recent question on the number of marriages contracted between UK nationals residing in the UK and spouses living abroad, and the percentage of these marriages that were arranged marriages, in each year since 1997. I am replying in his absence. (36841)
	I regret that the information requested is not available. Only marriages which are solemnised within England and Wales are routinely registered in this country. The nationalities of the spouses are not recorded amongst the details in the Marriage Register; nor whether the marriage was arranged or not.

Health and Safety (Computers)

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many employees in his Department who regularly use computers have taken up the provision of a free eye test; and how this service is advertised to (a) current and (b) new staff.

Ruth Kelly: 134 staff took advantage of the free eyesight test during 2001. The eyesight test service is communicated to the Department by:
	The Health and Safety Policy;
	Health and Safety Intranet Home Page;
	Regular electronic messages of the day;
	Articles in our house magazine;
	Reception training;
	Electronic training DSE package;
	Issue to everyone of the HSE booklet Working with VDUs;
	Minutes of Health and Safety Hon. and S Committee which includes statistics on eyesight testing;
	DSE risk assessments;
	Poster campaigns.

Landfill Tax

Pete Wishart: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what landfill tax proceeds have passed to Entrust in (a) 199899, (b) 19992000 and (c) 200001 for (i) the UK and (ii) Scotland.

Paul Boateng: Entrust, the regulator of the environmental bodies landfill tax credit scheme, receives none of the proceeds from landfill tax. Contributions made by landfill site operators under the scheme to environmental bodies are:
	
		
			   
		
		
			 (i) For the UK  
			 199899 82,676,183 
			 19992000 96,221,885 
			 200001 115,774,454 
			   
			 (ii) For Scotland  
			 199899 7,488,354 
			 19992000 7,992,538 
			 200001 7,808,311

Landfill Tax

Pete Wishart: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much has been raised by the landfill tax in (a) 199899, (b) 19992000, and (c) 200001 in (i) the UK and (ii) Scotland.

Paul Boateng: Figures relating to landfill tax are not available for separate countries or regions within the UK. This is due to the method of collection of the tax, where each landfill operator is registered according to the location of their head office.

Scottish Executive (Funding)

Pete Wishart: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Banff and Buchan (Mr. Salmond) of 31 January 2002, Official Report, column 518W, if he will set out for each year since 1997 and for each Department, in total and by project, the changes in their planned expenditure which have produced a share of such changes for the Scottish Executive under the Barnett formula; what the total value of such changes was by Department; what the resulting change in funding for the Scottish Executive was in total and in each case; and what the (a) changes in spending for each Department were as a percentage of total identifiable spending in England and (b) resulting produced changes for the Scottish Executive were as a percentage of total identifiable expenditure in Scotland.

Andrew Smith: Details of the Barnett formula used in the 1998 Comprehensive Spending Review were published in the Statement of Funding Policy in March 1999. An updated version of the statement was published in July 2000 showing details of the Barnett formula used in the 2000 Spending Review. The spending settlements for Scotland and for Government Departments were published in the 1998 Comprehensive Spending Review (Cm 4011) and 2000 Spending Review (Cm 4807). Details of identifiable total managed spending by function and country were published in Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses (Cm 5101) in April 2001.

Macmillan Cancer Relief

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations he has received concerning the VAT on building costs paid by Macmillan Cancer Relief; and if he will take measures to support Macmillan Cancer Relief.

Paul Boateng: The Government greatly appreciate the work of Macmillan Cancer Relief.
	The Government have received a number of representations concerning the VAT implications of Macmillan Cancer Relief's building programme. Customs have recently had useful and constructive initial discussions with Macmillan, and are currently giving further consideration to the issues raised.

Tax Payments (Euros)

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether UK residents can pay their tax bills in euros.

Ruth Kelly: The Inland Revenue accepts payment of tax bills in euros, in the same way as it accepts payment in other foreign currencies.

GDP Expenditure (Public Services)

Lynne Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the average proportion of gross domestic product spent on public services was during (a) 1975 to 1979, (b) 1980 to 1990, (c) 1990 to 1997 and (d) 1998 to 2001; and what his estimate is of the proportion of GDP that will be spent on public services between 2002 and 2006.

Andrew Smith: The proportions of gross domestic product accounted for by public spending, defined as Total Managed Expenditure (TME), for each financial year from 197071 to 200001 were published in the pre-Budget report (Cm5318), table B23. The equivalent projections for future years are set out in the table.
	
		
			  TME as percentage of GDP 
		
		
			 200102 39.5 
			 200203 40.0 
			 200304 40.4 
			 200405 40.5 
			 200506 40.5 
			 200607 40.4

Rail Journeys

John Bercow: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the (a) percentage and number of rail journeys undertaken on first class tickets, (b) average cost of a first class journey by rail and (c) total cost of rail travel in each of the past four years broken down by grade of civil servant.

Ruth Kelly: In 2001, 1,057 first class rail tickets were purchased by the Treasury (43 per cent. of the total tickets purchased). The average cost of a first class journey in that year was 116. Total spending on rail tickets over the past three years is set out in the table. Information for 1998 is not available. No analysis by grade is available.
	
		
			  Spending () 
		
		
			 1999 131,186 
			 2000 156,524 
			 2001 172,727

Terrorism

Ben Chapman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effect on the retail sector of changes in the level of insurance premiums since 11 September 2001.

Ruth Kelly: The terms, conditions and price of insurance products change constantly in response to market conditions. I am not aware of any significant changes directly attributable to 11 September, except in the availability of insurance against terrorism risk.

Royal Mint

David Cameron: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many euros have been produced by the Royal Mint; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: The Royal Mint has supplied euro blanks, mainly copper plated steel 1c, 2c and 5c blanks, to nine of the first wave countries. Most of the individual contracts are confidential but the total blanks supplied exceeds 11,000 tonnes.

Household Incomes/Consumption

Pete Wishart: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was (a) household income and (b) individual consumption expenditure in total and as a percentage of the UK total; and what the annual percentage change was in each of the last five years in each nation and region of the UK.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Peter Wishart, dated 25 February 2002
	As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your recent question on estimates of household income and individual consumption expenditure in the countries and regions of the United Kingdom. (37564)
	The latest data available are for the year 1999, and were published as an ONS News Release on 26 July 2001. These data are presented in the attached tables.
	The ONS is currently compiling estimates for data up to the year 2000 for sub-national household income. We plan to publish these estimates later in the spring. It is planned that estimates for sub-national individual consumption expenditure for the same period will be published in the summer.
	The publication referred to in this answer is available in the House of Commons Library and on the web at http://www.statistics.gov.uk/ regionalaccounts.
	
		Total household income by region 199599 --  million
		
			  1995 1996 1997(106) 1998(106) 1999(106) 
		
		
			 United Kingdom(107) 706,351 749,815 789,791 830,192 873,724 
			 North East 27,286 28,753 29,542 30,320 31,120 
			 North West 76,975 81,446 84,836 88,272 92,262 
			 Yorkshire and Humber 55,208 59,157 61,112 63,953 67,775 
			 East Midlands 46,654 49,986 52,763 54,971 57,445 
			 West Midlands 59,808 62,279 64,358 67,619 71,638 
			 East 67,523 71,582 77,970 83,517 88,824 
			 London 102,265 109,534 116,740 124,156 130,403 
			 South East 105,705 113,456 120,734 127,477 135,433 
			 South West 56,152 59,591 63,522 66,263 69,456 
			 Wales 30,948 32,503 33,614 35,198 37,169 
			 Scotland 60,408 63,381 65,305 68,397 71,296 
			 Northern Ireland 16,858 17,527 18,680 19,434 20,287 
			 UK less Extra-Regio 705,791 749,197 789,175 829,576 873,108 
			 Extra-Regio(108) 560 618 616 616 616 
		
	
	
		Percentage of UK Household Income (excluding extra-regio)
		
			  1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 
		
		
			 United Kingdom(107) 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 
			 North East 3.9 3.8 3.7 3.7 3.6 
			 North West 10.9 10.9 10.7 10.6 10.6 
			 Yorkshire and Humber 7.8 7.9 7.7 7.7 7.8 
			 East Midlands 6.6 6.7 6.7 6.6 6.6 
			 West Midlands 8.5 8.3 8.2 8.2 8.2 
			 East 9.6 9.6 9.9 10.1 10.2 
			 London 14.5 14.6 14.8 15.0 14.9 
			 South East 15.0 15.1 15.3 15.4 15.5 
			 South West 8.0 8.0 8.0 8.0 8.0 
			 Wales 4.4 4.3 4.3 4.2 4.3 
			 Scotland 8.6 8.5 8.3 8.2 8.2 
			 Northern Ireland 2.4 2.3 2.4 2.3 2.3 
		
	
	
		Household incomeyear on year percentage change (excluding extra-regio)
		
			  1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 
		
		
			 United Kingdom(107) 5.8 6.1 5.3 5.1 5.2 
			 North East 4.8 5.4 2.7 2.6 2.6 
			 North West 5.0 5.8 4.2 4.1 4.5 
			 Yorkshire and Humber 4.9 7.2 3.3 4.6 6.0 
			 East Midlands 5.1 7.1 5.6 4.2 4.5 
			 West Midlands 6.8 4.1 3.3 5.1 5.9 
			 East 5.6 6.0 8.9 7.1 6.4 
			 London 6.0 7.1 6.6 6.4 5.0 
			 South East 5.9 7.3 6.4 5.6 6.2 
			 South West 7.2 6.1 6.6 4.3 4.8 
			 Wales 6.5 5.0 3.4 4.7 5.6 
			 Scotland 5.8 4.9 3.0 4.7 4.2 
			 Northern Ireland 6.7 4.0 6.6 4.0 4.4 
		
	
	
		Individual consumption expenditure by region 199599 --  million
		
			  1995 1996 1997 1998 1999(106) 
		
		
			 United Kingdom(107) 454,934 486,226 517,909 551,823 586,906 
			 North East 18,241 19,272 20,150 20,998 20,659 
			 North West 50,717 53,864 57,489 59,774 64,133 
			 Yorkshire and Humber 36,798 39,108 41,255 44,248 44,956 
			 East Midlands 31,245 32,865 34,787 36,261 37,961 
			 West Midlands 39,106 40,993 43,309 46,107 49,416 
			 East 41,554 44,989 47,712 52,258 54,607 
			 London 63,080 66,893 72,873 80,737 89,241 
			 South East 68,110 73,585 78,921 85,207 92,024 
			 South West 35,717 38,979 41,784 43,887 47,384 
			 Wales 20,443 22,578 23,553 23,716 24,103 
			 Scotland 38,787 41,129 43,556 45,520 48,421 
			 Northern Ireland 11,192 11,977 12,521 13,109 14,009 
		
	
	
		Percentage of UK individual consumption expenditure
		
			  1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 
		
		
			 United Kingdom(107) 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 
			 North East 4.0 4.0 3.9 3.8 3.5 
			 North West 11.1 11.1 11.1 10.8 10.9 
			 Yorkshire and Humber 8.1 8.0 8.0 8.0 7.7 
			 East Midlands 6.9 6.8 6.7 6.6 6.5 
			 West Midlands 8.6 8.4 8.4 8.4 8.4 
			 East 9.1 9.3 9.2 9.5 9.3 
			 London 13.9 13.8 14.1 14.6 15.2 
			 South East 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.4 15.7 
			 South West 7.9 8.0 8.1 8.0 8.1 
			 Wales 4.5 4.6 4.5 4.3 4.1 
			 Scotland 8.5 8.5 8.4 8.2 8.3 
			 Northern Ireland 2.5 2.5 2.4 2.4 2.4 
		
	
	
		Individual consumption expenditureyear on year percentage change
		
			  1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 
		
		
			 United Kingdom(107) 4.7 6.9 6.5 6.5 6.4 
			 North East 4.3 5.8 4.6 4.2 -1.6 
			 North West 3.6 6.2 6.7 4.0 7.3 
			 Yorkshire and Humber 3.4 6.3 5.5 7.3 1.6 
			 East Midlands 6.2 5.2 5.8 4.2 4.7 
			 West Midlands 6.6 4.8 5.6 6.5 7.2 
			 East 7.9 8.3 6.1 9.5 4.5 
			 London 3.0 6.0 8.9 10.8 10.5 
			 South East 4.0 8.1 7.3 8.0 8.0 
			 South West 5.8 9.1 7.2 5.0 8.0 
			 Wales 6.8 10.5 4.3 0.7 1.6 
			 Scotland 2.9 6.0 5.9 4.5 6.4 
			 Northern Ireland 5.9 7.0 4.5 4.7 6.9 
		
	
	(106) Provisional
	(107) Components may not sum to totals as a result of rounding
	(108) Parts of the UK economic territory that can not be attached to any particular region
	Source:
	Regional Accounts 2001 Part 2 Regional Household Income and ICE

Vocational Training

John Bercow: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people have claimed tax relief for vocational training in each of the last four years; and what has been the cost to public funds in each year.

Andrew Smith: pursuant to his reply, 8 January 2002, C.810W
	The table unfortunately contained a number of errors. The correct information is as follows:
	
		
			 Year Claims received(109) Cost of tax relief(110)  million 
		
		
			 200001 125,000 30 
			 19992000 250,000 60 
			 199899 300,000 50 
			 199798 300,000 45 
		
	
	(109) Number of claims received and not the number of trainees as an individual could make more than one claim in a tax year. It was estimated that there were probably about 200,000 people claiming VTR in 199798 and 199899.
	(110) On an accrued basis.

Charities

Simon Thomas: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to introduce a statutory minimum threshold for the amount or percentage of donations raised by registered charities to be dedicated to the charities' beneficiaries.

Angela Eagle: This issue is currently being considered by Cabinet Office's performance and innovation unit as part of its review of the legal and regulatory framework for charities and the voluntary sector. The report of the review is due to be published in spring.

Charities

Simon Thomas: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the average proportion of moneys raised by registered charities which is dedicated directly to the charities' beneficiaries in the last year for which figures are available;
	(2)  how many registered charities were (a) investigated and (b) taken into administration on the grounds that an insufficient proportion of their received donations was dedicated directly to the charities' beneficiaries in each year since 1997;
	(3)  if he will introduce guidance as to the minimum acceptable threshold for the amount or percentage of donations raised by registered charities to be dedicated to the charities' beneficiaries;
	(4)  what steps he takes to ensure that registered charities inform potential donors of the proportion of moneys raised that is dedicated directly to the charities' beneficiaries.

Angela Eagle: I have been asked to reply.
	These are matters for the Charity Commission as the regulator of charities in England and Wales. The Chief Charity Commissioner will write to the hon. Member and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Library.